Iran Oil Exports Falling for Third Consecutive Month

Hitting a Low of 820,000 bpd

Iran’s oil exports fell for the third month in a row, reaching an average of 830,000 barrels a day, Reuters reported today. The slide in oil exports is continuing in spite of significant discounts offered by Iran to its Asian customers, China, India, Japan and South Korea, which together are buying 720,000 bpd of Iranian crude, or nearly 90 percent of the country’s exports.

China, Iran’s biggest customer, is purchasing 370,000 bpd, the lowest volume in a long time. India, the second biggest customer, is purchasing only 170,000 bpd, 20 percent below last month’s level, followed by Japan and South Korea at 100,000 and 80,000 bpd respectively.

File photo: Iran's oil export terminal at Kharq Island in the Persian Gulf (Getty)

Iran Calls on OPEC to Stop Decline in Oil Prices

Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh issued call to OPEC to work to stem the decline in global oil prices. Overall prices have seen steady decline lately and generally remained below $100 per barrel threshold.

“Given the downward trend of the oil prices, OPEC members should make efforts to offset their production to keep the prices from further instability,” Zanganeh said in a statement issued at OPEC. (UPI, 26 September)

The decline of prices below the $100 mark creates serious budgetary shortfall for Iran. The country exports oil at volumes nearly half its pre-sanctions levels, and is involved in two costly wars in Iraq and Syria.     

File photo: Iranian oil export terminal at Kharq Island (Getty Images)

Iran Oil Exports at 1.2 Million bpd

Exports Had Fallen to 700,000 bpd in 1H2013 - Government

Iran's Deputy Oil Minister Mansour Moazami said today in Tehran that the country’s oil exports have reached 1.2 million bpd, 20 percent higher than the government's budget.

“Our oil exports are now 20 percent higher than in the budget numbers, and we believe that in the current Iranian year (which started on 21 March) they will increase further,” Moazami added. (Mehr News Agency/AFP, 18 April)

Moazami also said that oil exports has “almost doubled” since Rouhani came to power last August.

“When the (Rouhani) government took office, exports were around 700,000 bpd," said Moazami (Mehr News Agency, 18 April)

This is the first time that the government confirms that the country’s oil exports in the first half of 2013 had fallen to as low as 700,000 bpd - Ahmadinejad administration always maintained that the export levels were above 1 million bpd during that period.

Iran’s oil exports peaked at 2.5 million bpd before sanctions went into effect; with China, India, South Korea and Japan being Iran's biggest oil customers.

File photo: Iran's crude oil export terminal at Kharg Island (Getty Images)

Iran Could be ‘Reliable’ Gas Supplier to EU - Minister

Amid Ukraine Crisis

Iran could be a “reliable, secure and long-term” supplier of gas to Europe, Iranian Minister of Industry Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh said in an interview with business daily Handelsblatt. (AFP/ Al Arabiya News, 14 April)

“We don’t want to compete with Russia. But we know that Europe’s demand for gas is increasing and would like a share in this,” Nematzadeh said. “We have the energy reserves and cooperation plans. But as far as Russia is concerned, that is a decision for Europe alone,” he added.

The minister’s statement seems to be taking advantage of the West’s irritation against Russia’s involvement in Ukraine. There have been calls in the West from influential opinion makers for reduction of Europe’s reliance on Russian gas.

File photo: Natural gas facilities in Assaluyeh on the Persian Gulf (IRNA)

Iran Could Offer Price Discounts to Regain Oil Markets

Iran could offer crude price discounts in the future to regain its former markets, a senior Iranian oil official said today, quoted by oil ministry news service Shana.

“Basically, Iran doesn't have any obligation to give discounts for selling crude oil because our existing oil customers at the moment can make their purchases in accordance with international laws without any worry,” Mohsen Ghamsari, NIOC's international affairs director, said.
”But as the oil minister has announced before, if the international circumstances become normal, in order to gain back our traditional markets, if necessary, one of Iran's leverages in this regard is price, considering the... situation [at the time],” he added.
(SHANA/Platts, 22 October)

The sanctions, in particular those imposed separately by the U.S. and EU in late June and early July last year, have slashed Iran's crude exports to around 1 million b/d from pre-sanctions levels of 2.3 million b/d.

Ghamsari, who is in charge of Iran's crude trade, also said oil supply in the market currently exceeded demand.

”Considering the global recession, the relation between demand and supply is not in a good condition, and I think, based on global factors, the oil price should naturally decrease, but because of brokers in the market, the stock market prices are not falling,” he said.

”Another reason for the oil price not falling, despite high supply in the market, is the high cost of production from some oil fields in the hands of big world powers because they want to keep production in these fields profitable,” he added.

Ghamsari said Iran's eventual recovery of its market share would push prices down.

”It is natural that after Iran's oil moves into the global markets again, under the current conditions, a decrease in the oil price can be seen. At the moment, based on the existing statistics, oil demand is 30% lower than the normal status,” Ghamsari said. “Obviously, all oil sellers want oil price to go up, but if we think realistically high oil prices will not benefit the producers much in the long run,” he added. (SHANA/Platts, 22 October)

North Sea Brent crude futures traded at $110.09/barrel today.

File photo: Iran's crude oil export terminal at Kharq Islands. (Getty Images)

Iran’s Oil Export Rises

Iran’s oil exports increased by 180,000 barrels last month, International Energy Agency (IEA) reported today. The crude exports totaled 1,170,000 barrels daily in September. (ISNA, 12 October)

The rise in China and India’s oil imports during the month was the main factor for the increase. China, Iran’s largest oil consumer purchased 555,000 barrels of Iranian oil and India bought 265,000 barrels daily. Iran’s crude output totaled 2,700,000 barrels daily in September.

File photo: Iran’s oil export terminal at Kharq Island in the Persian Gulf. (Getty Images)

Iran’s Annual Non-Crude Oil Exports at $37 Billion

Iran exported $12.5 billion of non-crude oil commodities during the first four months of the current Iranian calendar year that started on 21 March, Iran’s official news agency IRNA reported on Sunday.

Gas condensate continued to be the fastest growing non-crude oil exports. Pars Special Economic Energy Zone (PSEEZ) Director Ahmad Pourheidar told IRNA that 61 percent of value of the entire commodities exported from the PSEEZ were gas condensates. 

File photo: A freighter belonging to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRNA/Press TV)

A few more indicators for Iran's economy

In mainstream media reporting, the two indicators near exclusively cited for Iran's economy are inflation and oil export figures. Below are a few more economic indicators (and projections) provided to give a slightly fuller picture:

 

-Oil and gas exports initially took a dive in 2012 due to EU sanctions on the purchase of Iranian oil and US sanctions on the Iranian Central Bank, which undermined exports to non-European buyers of Iranian oil. 

-Growing gas and gas condensate exports will be the main factor behind the growth of petroleum exports in the current Iranian calendar year.

-The real success story in Iranian exports is the expansion of the country’s potential in non-oil exports. -The government has set a goal to achieve balanced trade between Iran’s non-oil exports and the country’s imports.

-Based on the latest statistics from the Iran Customs Administration, in the first three months of the current Iranian calendar year, which began on March 21, 2013, the value of Iran’s non-oil exports reached $7.7 billion while the value of imports stood at $9.4 million, i.e., a quarterly non-oil trade deficit of $1.7 billion.

-Taking into account the oil and gas exports, the country [will be] producing a healthy trade surplus. Though severe banking sanctions have impeded the repatriation of export revenues, Iran will develop new mechanisms to repatriate these funds and to boost its economy.

Source: Iran's Pivot to the East by Bijan Khajehpour for Al-Monitor Iran Pulse. For additional commentary, click HERE.

India’s April Oil Imports from Iran Drop 34.2 Percent

India’s oil imports from Iran fell 34.2 percent in April from March, the Times of India reported today. The report bolsters India’s case for the renewal of a waiver from US sanctions on Tehran due to expire next month. The US has already granted fresh waivers to Japan and 10 European countries but has so far left out China and India, Iran's biggest clients. (The Times of India, 22 May)

Compared to April 2012, Indian imports dropped 56.5 per cent to 117,300 barrels per day (bpd) now. Additionally, the Indian refiners are still struggling to insure cargoes from Iran. India is replacing Iranian crude with shipments from Venezuela, Iraq and Oman.

File photo: Iran’s Kharq Oil Terminal (Getty Images)

Iran Oil Exports Rose 13% in February

International Energy Agency (IEA) reported today that Iran’s oil exports rose by 13 percent in February despite widening sanctions. Customers purchased 1.28 million barrel a day from Iran last month, compared to 1.13 million bpd in January. A new U.S. sanction requiring importers to pay in local currencies kept in escrow accounts did not appear to affect February shipments. (Bloomberg, 13 March)

Iranian exports are still down from a daily average of 1.5 million a day last year and 2.5 million in 2011, and Reuters reported on Monday that March deliveries might be as low as 810,000 bpd. But IEA’s report shows Iran could increase its exports last month, questioning the accuracy of low estimates for March.

Iran’s output also expanded last month, rising 2.6 percent to 2.72 million barrels a day, compared with 3 million barrels a day in 2012, IEA reported.

File photo: Iran’s oil export terminal at Kharg Island (Getty Images)

Iraq Bans Import of Iranian Cars

Iraq has banned the import of Iranian-made cars. Iran exports popular Saiba and Samand models to Iraq. The ban went into effect at the beginning of the year. The Iraqi authorities blame alleged low-quality manufacturing and sub-par safety rating of the Iranian cars as the reasons for large number of fatal accidents involving those cars and hence the decision to ban them altogether. (Tabnak, 19 January)

The imports authorities also cited fuel standards used in Iranian cars as a main reason behind their decision.

“Iraqi fuel is well refined, something that Iranian companies have not observed,” said Adnan al-Sharifi, the CEO of the state-owned car-import corporation. (Al-Monitor, 19 January)

Photo credit: An aerial view of Baghdad's Khilani Square in central Baghdad. (Saad Shalash/Reuters/Al-Monitor)