"The pipeline which had been extended from South Pars Gasfield onshore refineries in Asalouyeh, Bushehr Province to Behbahan in Khuzestan Province, has now reached Bazargan border crossing in West Azarbaijan Province in the northwest," Amin Ebadi was quoted as saying by IRNA.
The 125-kilometer pipe has increased IGAT-9 capacity by 60 million cubic meters per day, Ebadi said.
IGAT is a series of nine large diameter pipelines built to supply gas from refineries in the south (Khuzestan and Bushehr provinces), according to Financial Tribune.
"The 56-inch-diameter IGAT-9 with a length of 1,863 km starts from Asalouyeh, crosses Ahvaz, Dehgolan (in Kurdestan Province) and reaches Bazargan district through 17 compressor stations."
The pipeline will augment gas supply to cold cities in the western regions namely Miandoab, Mahabad, Khouy and Maku.
According to Ebadi, Iranian Gas Transmission Company, a subsidiary of National Iranian Gas Company, has divided the country into 10 districts, of which District 7 (from where IGAT-9 passes) includes Hamedan, Markazi, Lorestan, Ilam, Kermanshah, Kurdestan, Qazvin and Zanjan provinces.
"About 13% of Iran’s gas output is delivered to these provinces, supplying 145 cities of the district’s 155 cities," he said.
Over 1,110 cities, 720 villages and 81 power plants have been connected to the grid and plans are underway to provide 21,000 more industrial units with gas by the end of the current fiscal year (March 2019).
Ebadi said of the 26,500 kilometers of gas pipelines nationwide, 4,300 km are in District 7, adding that there are 50 gas pipeline operation centers of which eight are in this district.
Caption: The pipeline will augment gas supply to cold cities in the western regions namely Miandoab, Mahabad, Khouy and Maku.