TEHRAN- The construction of the first single point mooring (SPM) system of the Jask crude oil export terminal has been completed and the SPM is loaded to be shipped toward its designated point in the Gulf of Oman waters, the operator of Jask oil terminal project in southern Iran announced.

Vahid Maleki put the capacity of this SPM system at 7,000 cubic meters per hour (equivalent to one million barrels per day) and said: "Soon, with the installation of this offshore structure at a distance of approximately six kilometers from Makran coast, the early phase of this project will go operational.”

As the country’s second major oil terminal, Jask terminal is under construction by Pars Oil and Gas Company (POGC) on 60 hectares of land and with nearly €260 million of investment.

According to Maleki, this SPM system and its accessories, including floating and submersible hoses, weigh nearly 800 tons and will be installed and fixed to the seafloor at a depth of 48 meters.

He also announced the beginning of the construction of the second 36-inch offshore oil pipeline of the terminal, saying: “The shore pulling operation of the 2.5-kilometer offshore pipeline, which will be connected to the SPM, has been started by Sea-Master vessel and is expected to be completed by the end of this week.”

The construction of the first 36-inch offshore oil pipeline of the export terminal was completed in late January.

According to Maleki, the total length of the offshore pipelines of the Jask oil terminal is about 45 kilometers, including six parts of 36-inch pipelines.

In line with the development of the mentioned oil terminal, a pipeline project, dubbed Goreh-Jask oil transfer project, is also underway which is going to provide Iran with an alternative route for the country’s crude oil exports that are currently carried out through the Strait of Hormuz.

EF/MA