Update (1100ET): A fire that broke out Monday in oil storage tanks in Iran’s Bandar Abbas has been extinguished, state-run IRNA reports, citing a province official.
Oil prices are fading back lower on the headlines…
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As we detailed earlier, Iranian state-run IRNA news is reporting that a large fire is engulfing the major Bandar Abbas oil refinery, considered among the largest in the Middle East with a reported refining capacity of more than 300,000 BPD.
“A Fire broke out at the Bandar Abbas oil refinery located in the south of Iran, the student-led Young Journalists Club news agency reported on Monday,” Reuters has confirmed. Multiple social media videos via state media sources currently show a very large blaze and thick plumes of smoke over the port city which lies on the southern coast.
Hormozgan Province, #Iran
Huge fire in Bandar Abbas Oil refinery pic.twitter.com/8bV9B4SmHJ— Aleph א (@no_itsmyturn) July 10, 2023
There are initial reports of at least four injuries as emergency crews are dispatched to battle the blaze. The reservoirs reportedly at center of the emergency belong to the Aftab Oil Refining company.
As yet, there’s been no indicator of the cause of the fire. Typically a large-scale Iranian infrastructure explosion or fire raises the possibility of external sabotage, given that Israel has long targeted Iranian energy, particularly nuclear sites.
State media videos have confirmed a large blaze at Bandar Abbas…
Hormozgan Province, #Iran
IRGC-affiliated Fars News Agency reports that fire broke out in Bitumen storage tanks belonging to the Aftab Oil Refining Co in west of Bandar Abbas. pic.twitter.com/tfDbGGWHdQ— Aleph א (@no_itsmyturn) July 10, 2023
A follow-up report in the official IRNA news agency said, “According to statements by local sources, efforts have been started to extinguish the fire, but there is a possibility of fire spreading and nearby reservoirs exploding.”
developing…
