By IRNA,
London : One of the oldest Iranian oil facilities dating back to the 1910s has been returned to Iran by the British Petroleum (BP).
The facility called ‘well-head’ was delivered on Tuesday to the officials of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) in a symbolic ceremony in London also attended by the BP COE.
Deputy head of the NIOC for investment affairs, Hojjatollah Ghanimifard told IRNA the well-head is 97-years-old and belongs to one of the first wells dug in Iranian southern oil-rich region of Masjed Soleiman.
A well-head, installed over an oil well, is used to suspend casing strings and provide sealing functionality for oil wells.
Ghanimifard said the well-head weighs about three tons and will be shipped to Iran to be displayed in the Oil Ministry.
“This well-head dates back to 1911 and was taken out of our country by the BP in the second decade of the twentieth century,” he said.
The official added that the old-age well-head has no industrial application.
“However, it is historically significant for the Iranian oil industry because it is a proof of the history of the lucrative industry in Iran ,” he said, adding that Iran has been one of the world’s largest producer and exporter of oil in the past century.
Referring to the ceremonies held this year on the occasion of the centenary of the oil industry in Iran, Ghanimifard said necessary coordination was made with BP officials to return the well-head.
He suggested such communications can result in the enhancement of lucrative bilateral relations between the two countries.