Iran plans to increase its crude oil output to 4 million barrels daily, the country's Tasnim news agency reported, as cited by Reuters.
No specific sources for the plan were provided but the original report in Tasnim said that "An economic council headed by Iran's interim president Mohammad Mokhber has approved a plan to raise the country's oil output from 3.6 million barrels per day to 4 million barrels per day."
Iran has been eager to increase its oil production despite U.S. sanctions that have significantly reduced the market for Iranian oil. Even so, Iran reported an increase in exports of crude recently, with the average daily for the first quarter hitting the highest in six years at 1.56 million bpd according to Vortexa data. Last year, the country exported 1.29 million bpd on average, which was 50% more than a year earlier.
"The Iranians have mastered the art of sanctions circumvention," Fernando Ferreira, head of geopolitical risk service at Rapidan Energy Group, told the FT at the time. "If the Biden administration is really going to have an impact, it has to shift the focus to China."
The news of production growth plans follows an earlier report that Tehran had inked oil project development plans worth a total $13 billion. Those were expected to add 350,000 barrels to Iran's daily production.
Iran's oil production as of April stood at around 3.2 million barrels daily, per OPEC's latest Monthly Oil Market Report. This compares with over 4.3 million barrels daily before the U.S. reimposed sanctions on Tehran, but there is space for growth. According to former oil minister Bijan Zanganeh, this growth could take the average daily all the way to 7 million barrels in less than ten years. The boost would cost about $70 billion, Zanganeh said recently, as quoted by Iran International.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
Charles is a writer for Oilprice.com More
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Comments
Moreover, the claim that Iran was producing 4.3 mbd before US sanctions were imposed is not true. Iran has has an old production quota of 4.0 mbd from OPEC but it never ever exceeded 3.6 mbd since then
It did however produce 6.0 mbd under the late Shah in the early 1970s but in so doing it seriously damaged its oil infrastructure from which it is yet to recover.
Dr Mamdouh G Salameh
International Oil Economist
Global Energy Expert