History
Mentioned in the Hudud al-'alam as a good source for pearls around 982 CE, Kharg was visited by Jean de Thévenot in 1665, who recorded trade at the time with Isfahan and Basra. In 1753 the Dutch Empire established both a trading post and a fort on the island. In 1766 the Dutch fort was captured by Mir Mahanna, the governor of Bandar Riq.
The island was briefly occupied in 1838 by the British to block the Siege of Herat (1838) but was soon returned.
Once the world's largest offshore crude oil terminal and the principal sea terminal for Iranian oil, the Kharg Island facilities were put out of commission in the fall of 1986. Heavy bombing of the Kharg Island facilities from 1982 through 1986 by the air forces of the government of Iraq during the Iran–Iraq War all but destroyed most of the terminal facilities. Kharg Island was situated in the middle of the Darius Oilfield, also destroyed by the intensive bombing. Repair to all facilities has been very slow, even after the war ended in 1988.
In 2009, Iran exported and swapped 950 million barrels of crude oil via southern Kharg oil terminal.
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