Page 62 - IRANRptSep21

9.1.14 Defence sector news
Commander claims Iran has drones with 7,000 km range
Iran has drones with a range of 7,000 km (4,375 miles), the top commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on June 27, Iranian state media reported.
Israel has previously voiced its concerns about Iran’s growing drone capability, while there is an expanding potential threat to US troops stationed in Iraq from Tehran-backed militants who might conceivably make increasing use of Iranian drones should tensions between the US and Iran mount. No evidence for the claim of the extensive drone range made by Guards commander-in-chief Hossein Salami was presented in the local media reports but Washington might observe such a development in Iranian drone technology as a threat to regional stability. Iran has in the past downed US drones flying over its territory and has likely reverse-engineered technology it retrieved from wreckage.
Iran is known to exaggerate the capabilities of newly unveiled domestically produced defence hardware. Drones are, however, used as a key element in Tehran's border surveillance, especially over the Persian Gulf waters and the Strait of Hormuz. It is also widely believed that Iran has used drones in attacks on Saudi oil facilities, while regional forces that Iran backs have increasingly relied on drones in Yemen, Syria and Iraq in recent years.
"We have unmanned aerial vehicles with the long range of 7,000 kilometres. They can fly, return home, and make a landing wherever planned," Salami was quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.
Iran regularly showcases its drones. In January, the country displayed hundreds of domestically produced combat drones at war games held in central Semnan province. The Iranian armed forces also reportedly successfully test-fired an Azarakhsh (Thunderbolt) air-to-air missile fired from a Karrar-class drone during the second day of the drills.
9.2 Major corporate news 9.2.1 Oil & gas corporate news
Iran’s Persian Gulf Star Refinery oil product exports ‘up 200%’
Exports of petroleum products from Iran’s Persian Gulf Star Refinery (PGSR) increased by 200% y/y in 2020, the Iranian oil ministry’s SHANA energy news service reported on June 9.
“It is estimated that 1.6mn tonnes of oil products were shipped to international markets in 2020,” refinery director Mohammad Dadvar was quoted as saying. Iran’s gasoline production has roughly doubled in three years, according to officials, allowing the country to become the biggest gasoline exporter in West Asia.
Despite US sanctions and fluctuating oil prices, driving up gasoline exports remained on the government's agenda, Dadvar was also reported as saying. “When there are surplus reserves, they can be sold through the Iranian Energy Exchange with less difficulty compared to crude oil,”Dadvar added.
PGSR is the largest in a significant project undertaken by the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Co. (NIORDC) which saw total Iranian refining capacity increase from 1.55mn bpd in 2017 to 2.2mn bpd last year.
The launch of the 360,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) refinery was also central to Iran achieving fuel self-sufficiency. Phase 1 was officially inaugurated in April 2017, with the first shipment of gasoline delivered for distribution two months later.
Phase 2 began producing Euro-V gasoline shortly after its own official launch
62 IRAN Country Report September 2021 www.intellinews.com