Iran makes discovery of 7.5 trillion cubic feet of gas amid war with US

Iran on Sunday announced the discovery of massive gas in a field ‌in the south of its Fars Province, according to Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad. The discovery of 7.5 trillion cubic feet (212.4 billion cubic ​metres) of gas comes at a time Tehran is involved in a conflict with United States for over five months.

Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad while making the announcement said that there is the possibility of extracting about 5,700 billion cubic feet of ​gas from that field. He further said that the recoverable gas reserves are enough to supply one phase of the South Pars gas field for around 15 years.

Paknejad described the newly discovered gas as “sweet gas” and said it would reduce both development and operational costs.

The field also contains significant volumes of gas condensates that could generate tens of billions of dollars in new wealth for Iran apart from what it will generate from the gas discovery.

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The discovery has come as a boon to Iran that has been carrying ​out repairs to its energy infrastructure damaged during the ‌war ⁠with Israel and the United States. It also faces planned sanctions that could affect its economy further.

Both the countries, US and Iran signed the memorandum of understanding in June, which was mediated by Pakistani and Qatar to come to a final agreement.

But since then Talks have stalled amid disputes over implementation of the memorandum and arrangements for navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping pathway.

The discovery has added a significant new resource to Iran’s national hydrocarbon reserves, said Iran's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad.