Iran’s largest oil refinery, the Abadan oil refinery, has increased its processing capacity as part of the government’s efforts to reduce the export of crude oil.

According to Hakim Qhayem, the managing director of the refinery, the facility’s processing capacity has risen from 470,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) to 500,000 bbl/d.

The refinery is estimated to further increase its capacity to 520,000 bbl/d by the end of the year, he added.

The Abadan refinery was processing 370,000 bbl/d of crude oil since President Ebrahim Raisi’s government took office in 2021 as Qhayem noted.

“With strategic targeting and planning, we aim to transform the Abadan refinery into a petro-refinery, increasing its capacity to 630,000 barrels per day by the end of the thirteenth government,” Qhayem said.

To achieve this goal, the refinery has allocated $400 million to become the largest refinery in the West Asia region.