An Iranian tanker loaded with fuel in a Venezuelan port (Getty)
Guild head revealed Oil and gas exporters And Iranian Petrochemicals, Hamid Hosseini, stated that his country currently exports between 700 to 800,000 barrels of oil per day, saying that the quantity should have been about two million barrels, which means, according to current oil prices, a daily loss estimated between 160 to 170 million dollars, or more than 62 billion dollars annually.
Iran was exporting before its oil was exposed to American ban On May 2, 2019, about two million and 500 thousand barrels per day. Hosseini added in an interview with the Iranian “Ekhteb” website, that the oil sanctions have incurred direct additional costs to the Iranian economy about 20 percent.
worrying losses
He pointed out that Iran sells its oil at discounts between 10 to 12 percent from market prices, with talk that it bears additional costs for shipping and transportation.
The head of the Iranian Oil and Gas Exporters Syndicate described the losses incurred by the Iranian economy as a result of the oil sanctions as “worrying”, noting that the country bears losses ranging from 10 to 15 billion dollars annually due to oil sale discounts and additional shipping costs.
He explained that the sanctions on the oil and gas sector have missed great investment opportunities in Iran, saying that “Iran is one of the few countries in the world that has projects of high economic feasibility in the oil and gas sectors, power plants, petrochemicals and mining, estimated at a thousand billion dollars.”
He pointed out that there are pending projects estimated at $100 billion launched by the government, but it is unable to complete them due to the lack of resources, adding that Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji had previously announced that the country needs to pump 150 to 160 billion dollars into the oil sector and related sectors to modernize wells, increase production, and restart production. Building infrastructure, transmission lines, refineries, and completing petrochemical projects.
Back to the energy market
Hosseini’s statements about the losses resulting from Iran’s ban on exporting its oil abroad come at a time when the country is preparing to return to the global energy market with the progress of the Vienna nuclear negotiations to revive the nuclear agreement and its parties talking about reaching an agreement to lift sanctions, in addition to the fact that global markets are experiencing a period of high Great price.
Analysts expect that Iranian oil will return quickly to the global market if the nuclear negotiations succeed, perhaps at large levels, especially at the beginning due to the quantities of oil that Iran keeps in ground and floating tanks, which are estimated at 60 million barrels.
And Bank of America says, according to Bloomberg Agency, that Iran’s exports in the year following any comprehensive agreement will add up to 400 million barrels, which is enough to turn global oil balances into a surplus.
The US bank expects the price of oil to rise to $120 a barrel by the middle of the year, but then drop to an average of $71 in the last quarter of the year, in part due to additional Iranian supplies.
In addition, there are official Iranian statements and international statements confirming a significant increase in oil exports in recent months. The representative of the Iranian Supreme Leader in the Iranian National Security Council, Saeed Jalili, confirmed earlier this month in a tweet that his country was able during the recent period to export 1.2 million barrels per day for the first time in more than three years from the US embargo, which he said was aimed at zeroing Iranian oil exports, but failed.
Investments in oil and gas
Iran is also seeking, by attracting internal investments to oil and gas fields, to quickly return to the global energy market. The Director of Public Relations at the Iranian Ministry of Oil, Ali Foruzandeh, recently announced that Tehran has concluded contracts worth $4.5 billion to develop 7 oil and gas fields in recent months. .
Meanwhile, an Iranian delegation specialized in the oil and banking fields headed last week to South Korea to hold economic talks with officials there, according to Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh.
Khatibzadeh added in a press statement that the Iranian delegation of experts will hold negotiations with South Korean companies and authorities, noting that his visit aims to discuss the possibility of resuming the export of oil and gas condensates to South Korea.
Release Frozen Stocks
He explained that the delegation will also hold consultations with Seoul regarding the release of Iranian assets frozen in it due to US sanctions, pointing out that the results of the visit “can constitute a test to assess the seriousness and will of South Korea to solve the current problems between the two countries and restore relations to their normal state through the sale of oil and gas condensate. to South Korea and its companies’ investments in Iranian economic projects. Tehran estimates its debts to South Korea at about $8 billion.
About South Korea’s $8 billion debt to Iran, which has been frozen so far, former Iranian ambassador Fereydoun Entezari said: “The truth is that Iranian money has been frozen in South Korea for years, and if this money was in Iran’s economic cycle, it would have brought great benefits to Iran. Our officials and negotiators must They demand that Korea openly and decisively on this issue and not fall short in this regard in any way.
According to Fars, the Iranian ambassador said that South Korea had bought eight billion dollars worth of oil from Iran and made dozens of times more profit from this oil.
He added that “the oil that was used as a petrochemical raw material was sold at several times the price, and now they are following the policies of the United States.”
He added that after the United States withdrew from the nuclear deal, many Korean companies left Iran, and that was a great insult to Iran.
“I think there should be firm engagement with South Korea so that we can reach a good conclusion in this regard,” he said.