Iran plans to raise its current oil refining capacity by 250,000 bpd before next March, said the head of National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company.
"We managed plans to domestically refine 850,000 bpd of crude oil and gas condensates, which the unilateral US sanctions could bar from entering the global markets, and produced by products with more added value," NIORDC Managing Director Alireza Sadeqabadi was quoted as saying by spglobal.com.
Iran's refining capacity is 2.15 mbd, Sadeqabadi said, adding that the volume stood at 1.55 mbd in April 2017.
"This amount is increasing and will reach around 2.4 mbd by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2020)," he said.
Iran's Parliament approved on Sunday a motion to build new gas condensate and oil refineries, a move that is in line with the refining capacity increase.
"The policies we pursue ... will raise refining and reception of gas condensates from 450,000 barrels to 500,000 barrels and that of oil from around 1.7 million barrels to around 1.9 million barrels on a daily basis," Sadeqabadi said.
A big part of the additional capacity comes from the country's Persian Gulf Star Refinery gas condensates plant, whose actual condensate capacity has reached 360,000-400,000 bpd.
"In the next month, this amount will rise to 420,000 bpd and in October 450,000 bpd [of gas condensates]," the NIORDC official said.
Persian Gulf Star Refinery's nominal capacity has increased to 480,000 bpd of gas condensates, he added.
"Beside the fourth phase of Persian Gulf Star...300,000-350,000 bpd of crude oil has been added to the refineries of Abadan, Isfahan, Tehran, Arak, Shiraz and Bandar Abbas," Sadeqabadi said.
The country's "strategic gasoline and diesel stocks" are in a very good condition, and NIORDC is around 20-30 percent ahead of its commitment regarding supply of feedstock for petrochemical plants, he added.