Smuggling fuel pipeline discovered off the coast of Bandar Abbas
The deputy border guard of Hormozgan announced the discovery of a pipeline transporting smuggled fuel on the coast of Soro in Bandar Abbas. The length of this pipeline, which runs under sand and seawater, is reported to be 4 kilometers.
The deputy of Hormozgan Border Guard announced the discovery of a 4-kilometer pipeline transporting smuggled fuel, thanks to the efforts of border guards from the Bandar Abbas Naval Base and the cooperation of law enforcement agents in the city.
According to ISNA, Abdullah Lashkari announced this news on the morning of Sunday, February 20: "This pipeline, which was hidden by smugglers under sand and seawater, was discovered through an intelligence operation on the coast of Soro."
According to him, smugglers were transporting fuel from the coast to various vessels through this pipeline.
The deputy border guard of Hormozgan says that this pipeline has now been pulled out from under the sand and seawater, and the smugglers' fuel transportation route has also been cut off.
Laying pipes from the coast to the sea has been identified as one of the methods used by fuel smugglers in Hormozgan, and according to this report, over 20 kilometers of pipes have been discovered in this area in the past year.
These pipelines were mainly installed in Sirik County, located 175 kilometers east of Hormozgan Province.
Smuggling of gasoline, diesel, and other petroleum products in Iran is not new news. Iranian officials have repeatedly cited the price difference between Iran's gasoline and diesel prices and those of neighboring countries as a reason for fuel smuggling to these countries.
Hamidreza Dehghannia, spokesman for the "Staff to Combat Smuggling of Goods and Currency," in an interview with the Islamic Republic Radio and Television on Sunday, January 25, said the total volume of smuggling of petroleum products and derivatives is about 9 million liters per day, of which 3 million liters is fuel.
Mojtaba Mahfouzi, a representative from Abadan in the parliament, also stated on the same television program that one of the reasons for the phenomenon of "fuel smuggling" is the difference in the subsidized rate of Iranian petroleum products compared to other Persian Gulf countries.
Referring to the high volume of fuel smuggling in Iran, he said that this volume of fuel cannot be seen as being smuggled only by small smugglers, but rather there are mafias behind the scenes who ultimately reach the visible smugglers.
Many experts believe that the bulk of fuel smuggling in Iran is organized and carried out by government agencies with the intention of circumventing sanctions imposed against Iran.
Source: DW
