The European Union and US are expected to formally lift sanctions against Iran this weekend
The European Union and US are expected to formally lift sanctions against Iran this weekend
«The European Union and US are expected to formally lift sanctions against Iran this weekend, dismantling an intricate network of punitive measures built up over nearly a decade and reconnecting Tehran to the global economy. The lifting of sanctions, which will include an end to an EU embargo on the imports of Iranian oil, will have huge ramifications internationally, most notably on the global oil market as Tehran is expected to immediately add almost half a million barrels per day to its crude exports. This will affect plummeting oil prices in a market already struck by oversupply», The Guardian reports.
The Persian Gulf nation will increase crude oil production by 100,000 barrels a day, or 3.7 percent, a month after sanctions are lifted and by 400,000 in six months, according to the median estimate of 12 analysts and economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has pledged to boost output by half a million barrels a day within weeks of the end of sanctions and by the same amount again in six months.
The strictures may be removed as soon as January 18.
“After years of sanctions and under-investment, I doubt Iran can just turn up the volume quickly,” Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen, said by e-mail. “On that basis it will take longer before they reach their full potential.”
The International Atomic Energy Agency is expected to report Friday that Iran has fulfilled its commitments under July’s nuclear accord with world powers, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in Tehran. That would enable a joint announcement by January 17, implementing the deal and lifting sanctions, he said.
OPEC Press Room says that OPEC daily basket price stood at $25.69 a barrel Wednesday, 13 January 2016. The new OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Minas (Indonesia), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).
Let’s add that Iran’s output was already in long-term decline before the latest sanctions were imposed. It pumped 2.7 million barrels a day in December, making it OPEC’s fifth-biggest producer, compared with about 3.6 million in 2011 and 4 million in 2008, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
