TEHRAN, Iran (AP)

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has inaugurated a new phase in the development of a massive natural gas field.

State TV on Sunday quoted the CEO of the South Pars gas field company, Mohammad Meshkinfam, as saying the development will allow Iran to overtake Qatar in the production of natural gas. The two countries are among the biggest gas producers in the world, and share the South Pars gas field, which is beneath the Persian Gulf.

Rouhani presided over the inauguration of four projects with a total annual investment of $5 billion. Each will produce an additional 56 million cubic meters of natural gas and 75,000 barrels of condensate per day.

Iran currently produces more than 600 million cubic meters of gas and 200,000 barrels of condensate per day.