South Pars maintenance drive targets stable winter gas supply after refinery damage
Pars Oil and Gas Company is carrying out an intensive turnaround program at 20 offshore platforms in the South Pars gas field to help ensure a stable natural gas supply during the winter after recent conflicts damaged part of the country's gas-processing infrastructure, a senior official at the company said on Friday.
Alireza Sarmadi, the company's production and operations manager, told IRNA that damage to several gas refineries during two recent conflicts had made maximum readiness of the offshore platforms for the cold season a top priority.
Iran came under a 12-day Israeli attack in June 2025 and a US-Israeli war that began in late February 2026.
The maintenance campaign began in mid-April and is expected to conclude in September, Sarmadi said.
It is aimed at minimizing production downtime while carrying out technical inspections, repairing rotating and process equipment, and calibrating control systems to ensure the reliability of the facilities.
Sarmadi said this year's turnaround program differs from previous years because the maintenance schedule has been compressed due to operational constraints caused by the recent conflicts.
“Because processing capacity at the damaged refineries remains limited, prolonged shutdowns of the offshore platforms are not possible,” he said. “As a result, the maintenance schedule has been tightened, while procurement of strategic parts has been managed through domestic manufacturers.”
Sarmadi said logistical constraints, particularly restrictions on helicopter flights, had added to the challenges.
An Israeli air strike in March damaged several gas-processing facilities along the coast of Bushehr Province.
Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said in June that Iran had restored about 30 million cubic meters of gas-processing capacity lost during the US-Israeli war.
South Pars, which Iran shares with Qatar, accounts for 70% of the country's natural gas supply and provides 40% of the feedstock required for gasoline production.
Sarmadi said part of the damaged refinery capacity had returned to production, but a full recovery would not be possible in the short term.
He said maintaining the stability of the gas network during the winter would require not only maximum readiness of production platforms but also efficient gas consumption by end-users.