MNA� Iran�s oil minister told the media on Tuesday that with completion of the 1st phase of Setareh Khalij Fars Refinery, Iran will stop importing gasoline from March.


�The first phase of Setareh Khalij Fars (Persian Gulf�s Star) Natural Gas Condensate Refinery will be tapped in near future and consequently Iran will become self-sufficient in producing gasoline,� said Iran's Minister of Petroleum Bijan Njamdar Zanganeh on Tuesday

The Iranian oil minister recounted that the refinery is almost ready to open and all efforts are aimed at�tapping the plant before the end of the current Iranian year (on March 20) while there is a possibility of a little delay. Zanganeh reassured that the construction is currently undergoing non-stop in three working shifts.

Abbas Kazemi, the MD (Managing Director) of Iran�s National Company of Refining and Distributing Oil Products had already told Mehr News Agency in an interview that the first phase of Setareh Khalij Fars�Natural Gas Condensate Refinery will have a daily output of 12 million liter gasoline of the quality which meets Euro-IV�emissions standards.

�While there was a 3.9 percent rise of gasoline consumption in the first 7 months of the current year, there is an expectation to have the number under 2% by the end of the year,� had speculated Mr. Kazemi, the Iranian Deputy Oil Minister in that interview.