Iran: Rouhani Inaugurates Megaprojects In Southwest Province Of Khuzestan

By Mehdi Sepahvand

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani inaugurated several megaprojects during a trip to the southwestern province of Khuzestan.

Notable among the projects was the development of oil fields in West Karun, IRIB news agency reported November 13.

The projects concerned North and South Azadegan as well as North and South Yaran fields which will increase the country’s crude output by 300,000 barrels per day.

Shared with Iraq, West Karun is able to yield up to 1 mbpd.

Yadavaran was provided with a budget of $2.9 billion. It was meant to meet an output of 85,000 barrels per day, but the project carrier has managed to hit 115,000 barrels per day.

Another project that was inaugurated by Rouhani was a railway centralized traffic control (CTC) center.

Also, some 10 trillion rials ($313 million) was allocated to anti-poverty projects in the province, which include building schools, small stadiums, health centers, water distribution, and roads.

The president also announced the near-future start of more projects, such as building a second rail for the Ahvaz-Bandar Imam railroad as well as the Ahvaz-Andimeshk railroad.

The railroad is being reconstructed 50 years after it was first created.