How the Zagros Mountains became an oil engine<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Around 25 million years ago, the Arabian plate began pushing into the Eurasian plate, helping lift the Zagros range along Iran\u2019s western edge. The mountains are still rising by a couple of centimeters per year, which sounds tiny until you realize the squeeze never really stops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: A tunnel between Europe and Africa is moving closer, and the 65-kilometer plan could turn ferries into the old way to cross<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nThat pressure bends the crust into long waves that reach toward the Persian Gulf and across Saudi Arabia. Oil and gas can migrate through porous rock, then get trapped under the fold in what geologists call an “anticline.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tiny organisms from the ancient Tethys Sea were buried and transformed into oil and gas, but the Zagros setup created unusually big traps with fewer cracks and a strong seal. In many places the seal is salty, which can deform and “heal” under pressure. As University of Oslo geologist Dag Arild Karlsen put it, “Nature is not democratic. You either have it, or you don\u2019t.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A chokepoint with global consequences<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Strait of Hormuz matters because so much of the world\u2019s easiest to export oil sits behind it. U.S. Energy Information Administration<\/a> analysis shows about 20 million barrels per day moved through Hormuz in 2024, roughly the equivalent of 20% of global petroleum liquids consumption, and flows through the strait also made up more than one quarter of total global seaborne oil trade.<\/p>\n\n\n\nSo, what happens when tankers cannot move freely? Prices jump, shipping schedules<\/a> slip, and the cost ripples from freight rates to the gas station.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThere are workarounds, but they are limited. The EIA estimates roughly 2.6 million barrels per day of pipeline capacity could be available to bypass Hormuz in a disruption, including Saudi Arabia\u2019s East West line and the UAE\u2019s existing Habshan to Fujairah route at 1.8 million barrels per day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
That is why Abu Dhabi\u2019s latest pipeline push is being treated as more than an infrastructure project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Business is following the rocks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Karlsen\u2019s point about a petroleum system that “works like a factory” is more than a vivid quote. Strong traps and seals make extraction more favorable, and that tends to keep investment flowing even when demand forecasts wobble.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The scale is hard to overstate. Saudi Arabia\u2019s Ghawar<\/a> is widely described as the world\u2019s largest conventional oil field, and Saudipedia says its reserves are estimated at 58.32 billion barrels and its total production represents about 6.25% of global oil production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAlso Read: A Nobel Prize chemist is turning dry air into 1,000 liters of water a day, and the machine could redraw the fight against drought<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nFor the environment, the problem is not only what happens when oil is burned. Upstream operations can leak methane<\/a> and waste gas through flaring, and those emissions add heat to a planet already dealing with longer heat waves. <\/p>\n\n\n\nThe World Bank\u2019s Global Gas Flaring Tracker says global flaring rose to 151 billion cubic meters in 2024, releasing 438 million of CO2 equivalent, including emissions in the form of unburnt methane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tech that cuts emissions and tech that keeps oil flowing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Some of the fastest climate wins here are not futuristic. The International Energy Agency says around 70% of methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector could be avoided with existing technologies, and it estimates about 39 million tons of methane from oil, gas, and coal could be avoided at no net cost based on average 2024 energy prices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If fixes can pay for themselves, why does methane still leak?<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/okdiario.com\/techy\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/zagros-mountains-persian-gulf-oil-geology-1.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
The rising Zagros Mountains create unique geological folds that have formed the world\u2019s most efficient oil reservoirs, fueling global energy markets for decades.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nMeasurement is one reason the industry is changing. The World Bank now relies on satellite data to estimate global flaring, and governments and investors increasingly use monitoring tech, including sensors, aircraft, and satellites, to spot large releases and pressure operators to respond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Carbon capture is also moving from concept to concrete projects, especially in the Gulf where the geology is already proven at trapping fluids underground. Reuters reported that Aramco, SLB, and Linde plan a Jubail carbon capture and storage project designed to capture and store up to 10 million tons of CO2 a year by the end of 2027. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\nAlso Read: A 50-year-old rule is forcing new trains to crawl at 40 km\/h on billion-euro railways, while old locomotives fly past them<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nAramco separately says its planned CCS hub<\/a> at Jubail targets completion in 2028 with about 10 million tons per year expected to be stored in phase one.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe environmental bottom line<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Zagros Mountains are a reminder that Earth\u2019s deep time can shape today\u2019s headlines. Geology created giant, well sealed reservoirs, but modern choices determine whether that advantage turns into a decades-long emissions lock in or a bridge to cleaner systems backed by real methane cuts and better monitoring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the end of the day, the mountains are moving slowly, but the climate clock is not. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The official statement was published on Abu Dhabi Media Office<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Every time the Strait of Hormuz makes the news, drivers thousands of miles away can feel it at the pump. … <\/p>\n
So, what happens when tankers cannot move freely? Prices jump, shipping schedules<\/a> slip, and the cost ripples from freight rates to the gas station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are workarounds, but they are limited. The EIA estimates roughly 2.6 million barrels per day of pipeline capacity could be available to bypass Hormuz in a disruption, including Saudi Arabia\u2019s East West line and the UAE\u2019s existing Habshan to Fujairah route at 1.8 million barrels per day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n That is why Abu Dhabi\u2019s latest pipeline push is being treated as more than an infrastructure project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Karlsen\u2019s point about a petroleum system that “works like a factory” is more than a vivid quote. Strong traps and seals make extraction more favorable, and that tends to keep investment flowing even when demand forecasts wobble.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The scale is hard to overstate. Saudi Arabia\u2019s Ghawar<\/a> is widely described as the world\u2019s largest conventional oil field, and Saudipedia says its reserves are estimated at 58.32 billion barrels and its total production represents about 6.25% of global oil production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the environment, the problem is not only what happens when oil is burned. Upstream operations can leak methane<\/a> and waste gas through flaring, and those emissions add heat to a planet already dealing with longer heat waves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The World Bank\u2019s Global Gas Flaring Tracker says global flaring rose to 151 billion cubic meters in 2024, releasing 438 million of CO2 equivalent, including emissions in the form of unburnt methane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the fastest climate wins here are not futuristic. The International Energy Agency says around 70% of methane emissions from the fossil fuel sector could be avoided with existing technologies, and it estimates about 39 million tons of methane from oil, gas, and coal could be avoided at no net cost based on average 2024 energy prices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If fixes can pay for themselves, why does methane still leak?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Measurement is one reason the industry is changing. The World Bank now relies on satellite data to estimate global flaring, and governments and investors increasingly use monitoring tech, including sensors, aircraft, and satellites, to spot large releases and pressure operators to respond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Carbon capture is also moving from concept to concrete projects, especially in the Gulf where the geology is already proven at trapping fluids underground. Reuters reported that Aramco, SLB, and Linde plan a Jubail carbon capture and storage project designed to capture and store up to 10 million tons of CO2 a year by the end of 2027. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Aramco separately says its planned CCS hub<\/a> at Jubail targets completion in 2028 with about 10 million tons per year expected to be stored in phase one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Zagros Mountains are a reminder that Earth\u2019s deep time can shape today\u2019s headlines. Geology created giant, well sealed reservoirs, but modern choices determine whether that advantage turns into a decades-long emissions lock in or a bridge to cleaner systems backed by real methane cuts and better monitoring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the end of the day, the mountains are moving slowly, but the climate clock is not. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The official statement was published on Abu Dhabi Media Office<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Every time the Strait of Hormuz makes the news, drivers thousands of miles away can feel it at the pump. … <\/p>\nBusiness is following the rocks<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: A Nobel Prize chemist is turning dry air into 1,000 liters of water a day, and the machine could redraw the fight against drought<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Tech that cuts emissions and tech that keeps oil flowing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: A 50-year-old rule is forcing new trains to crawl at 40 km\/h on billion-euro railways, while old locomotives fly past them<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
The environmental bottom line<\/h2>\n\n\n\n