TEHRAN (Mehr News Agency) – The first phase of South Pars Project will come on stream in mid-December, managing director of South Pars Oil and Gas Co. Asadollah Salehi-Foruz announced here Monday.

The phase reserves 25 million cubic meters of refined gas, 400 thousand liquid gas barrels, and a daily capacity to produce 200 tons of sulphur. It will be officially made operational in January 2004, Salehi-Foruz stated.

Petro Pars Company, which is the project contractor, has so far invested $780 million on the project. Platform construction for the first phase is nearly finished, he added.

He also said that the fourth and fifth phases of the project will come on stream at the beginning of the next Iranian year (starting March 21, 2004). Then, about one million tons of Ethan as well as 1.05 million tons of liquid gas would be added to the entire output of the project.

As the new phases are made usable, a remarkable amount of exchange expenses will be saved for the country’s treasury, Salehi-Foruz stated.

Meanwhile, reports say that an international airport is being constructed in Pars Energy Special Economic Zone. The primary phase of the project including Tarmac building is supposed to end in the first half of the next Iranian year. An $8 million contract was made in July 2003 to build the airport.

A servicing port is also going up in the region. It will be made operational in about two years. ER/IS END MNA