08/03/2022 by Mark
Should negotiations in Vienna be successful and result in the lifting of US sanctions, Iran says it can return to its full oil production capacity within two months.
The official IRNA agency has quoted Javad Owji, Iran’s Oil Minister, as saying that the country stands ready to raise oil production and exports to levels not seen since November 2018, when Donald Trump, as US President at the time, re-imposed sanctions on Iranian oil. Negotiations have been ongoing in Vienna over the past months to revive the nuclear deal, with negotiators recently reporting progress and raising hopes of a renewed agreement.
The official agency of Owji’s ministry, Shana, reported that he said after the recent OPEC meeting:
“It is up to the major consuming countries to take the necessary steps to maintain stability and calm in the oil market…I promise to reach the highest oil export capacity within one to two months as soon as the green light from Vienna is given.”
Increasing demand for oil has been driving oil prices upwards, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine adding further pressure recently. The OPEC+ group has so far resisted calls to accelerate an increase in production, and there are doubts that most member countries have the spare capacity to do so. While some oil majors like ExxonMobil, the maker of Mobil metalworking fluids and other lubricants, have indicated plans to increase their US-based production, markets remain tight.
Owji has previously estimated Iran’s production capacity at four million barrels per day, with 2.5 million of these being available for export.
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