Iranian oil exports hit new highs in the last two months of 2022 and are off to a good start to 2023 despite US sanctions, according to companies that track the flows, on increased shipments to China and Venezuela.
Tehran’s oil exports have been constrained since former US President Donald Trump abandoned a 2015 nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions aimed at curbing oil exports and associated revenues to the Tehran government. Iran.
Exports rose during the tenure of his successor, President Joe Biden, who had sought to revive the nuclear deal, reaching the highest level since 2019 by some estimates. This comes despite headwinds such as a deadlock in those talks and competition from discount Russian crude.
Energy consultancy SVB International said Iran’s crude exports in December averaged 1.137 million barrels a day, 42,000 bpd higher than in November and the highest figure for 2022 that SVB has reported based on previously given estimates.
“Compared to the Trump administration, there has not been any serious crackdown or action against Iran’s oil exports,” said Sara Vakhshouri of SVB. “January exports were so far strong like previous months.”
“Lower Chinese demand and supply from Russia to China have been a big challenge for them. Most of its oil still goes to the Far East, ultimately to China. Iran also helps Venezuela to export its oil.
Adrienne Watson, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council at the White House, said the administration’s enforcement of sanctions is strong and that “Iran’s macroeconomic numbers clearly confirm this.”
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“We have not hesitated and will not hesitate to take action against sanctions evaders, along with sanctions against Iran’s missile and drone trade, and human rights violations against the Iranian people,” Watson said. The Treasury Department imposed sanctions late last year on an oil smuggling ring linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Consultancy Petro-Logistics, which tracks oil supplies, said it was also seeing an upward trend in Iranian crude exports, which it said reached their highest level since March 2019 in December.
Kpler, a data intelligence firm, pegged Iranian crude exports at 1.23 million bpd in November, the highest since August 2022 and almost on par with the April 2019 rate of 1.27 million. bpd, although they fell to just under 1 million bpd in December.
Iran’s oil ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the exports. Iran’s draft state budget is based on even larger shipments of 1.4 million bpd, the semi-official Fars news agency reported this week.
China is Iran’s biggest customer. To evade sanctions, most of Iran’s crude exports to China are rebranded as foreign crude, according to analysts including FGE. Iran has said in the past that documents were falsified to hide the origin of Iranian shipments.
In addition, Iran last year expanded its role in Venezuela, also under US sanctions, sending supplies of light oil for refining and diluents to produce exportable grades of crude.
