Asian refineries, which have traditionally been a major buyer of Iranian oil, are keen to resume imports from Tehran if an agreement is reached to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, which might pave the way for more supplies to global markets and limit price hikes.
A report by “Archyde.com” indicated that most buyers from Asia stopped their imports from Iranian oil In 2019, when the US President at the time, Donald Trump, announced his country’s withdrawal from the nuclear agreement concluded with Iran and re-imposed sanctions on its oil exports.
Indirect talks between Iran and the United States on the nuclear deal resumed last week.
Western diplomats said they had hoped for a breakthrough now, but difficult issues had not yet been resolved.
Rising prices
Oil prices rose to their highest levels in seven years, as fears of disruption to Russian energy supplies supported the prices of Brent and US crude futures.
Refineries are also paying huge price differentials in the spot market for raw materials produced in Europe and the Middle East, while producers are finding it difficult to keep pace with the booming demand following the “Covid-19” pandemic.
South Korea
A source from a major South Korean refinery said the refinery is closely monitoring the nuclear talks, as Iranian oil is cost-competitive and easy to refine compared to Mexican crude.
“Since we used Iranian crude, we don’t need to test it in our facilities,” the source said.
Japan
The head of Japan’s largest refinery, Ineos, said today that the refinery is considering resuming oil imports from Iran if an agreement is reached in the nuclear talks.
He added, “We have not started these preparations yet, but we will consider resuming crude imports from Iran as one of our purchase options if an agreement is reached.”
He explained that it would take two to three months to resume oil imports from Iran, as the refinery would need some arrangements such as insurance and shipping.
India and China
An Indian refinery, which is the second largest customer of Iran, is also conducting talks, according to a source from the refinery, and is waiting for a clarity of vision regarding the talks.
Last month, Chinese clients announced the first imports of Iranian crude in a year.