TEHRAN, Feb. 05 (MNA) – The Iranian deputy oil minister said that the country has become the biggest petrol exporter among the OPEC countries by increasing production and thanks to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Speaking to the Iranian Tasnim news agency, Deputy Oil Minister Alireza Sadegh Abadi said that thanks to the restrictions imposed on the travel of citizens due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Iran has been able to export the extra petrol produced in its refineries.

"Iran is currently the largest exporter of gasoline in the region; We are the main supplier of gasoline to Iraqi Kurdistan, we export gasoline to Afghanistan and Pakistan, we have recently started exporting gasoline to Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia, and our marine gasoline exports to many countries in the region is underway," the official said.

Sadegh Abadi said that the per capita fuel consumption is high in Iran as compared to the average global rate, saying that due to the low price of petrol in Iran large shares of petrol and other fossil fuels are consumed in the country. 

He said that one way to reduce petrol consumption in the country is relacing it with CNG. 

The deputy oil minister said that despite the fact that Iran is now the biggest exporter of the product among the OPEC member states, it must try to lower the internal consumption in the next year when the coronavirus restrictions are lifted by replacing it with CNG and finding ways to reduce overall petrol consumption in order to maintain the share in the market.

KI/Tasnim2446834