Ahmadreza Rasti, Managing Director of the Iranian Offshore Oil Company (IOOC), announced that construction of the Abuzar offshore oilfield pipeline has accelerated, with pipe coating completed at Mahshahr and ongoing work at Khorramshahr. A domestically engineered pipe-laying vessel is being prepared, and offshore operations are expected to start soon.
He also noted the repair and reactivation of a substitute pipeline that had halted production due to leaks. The original 24-inch oil pipeline to Kharg Island had deteriorated, and plans to replace it with a 20-inch pipeline were delayed for about six years due to the lack of a pipe-laying barge. Meanwhile, the 26-inch associated gas pipeline also suffered severe corrosion and was out of service until recently. The restored pipeline is now operating at 100,000 bpd, well below its full capacity.