Page 43 - IRANRptOct20

9.0​ Industry & Sectors 9.1 ​Sector news
9.1.1​ Oil & gas sector news
Two new phases at Iran’s South Pars gas field yielding 40 mcm daily
Iran’s oil minister openly admits forging exports documents to dodge US sanctions
US extends Iraq waiver to buy gas from Iran by 60 days
Daily gas production from phases 22 and 24 of Iran's South Pars gas field has reached 40mn cubic metres, according to a company official on September 26.
Iran continues to invest in the huge offshore field despite international companies like Total pulling out in 2016 due to US pressure following the resumption of American sanctions. In the meantime, local companies have stepped into the fray to develop and extract the underwater gas.
The director of Refinery Number 12, Mehdi Gerami Shirazi, said: “Since South Pars phases 22 and 24 have newly been launched, their daily gas production capacity has reached 40mn cubic metres.”
“Refinery Number 12 of South Pars delivers about 46mn cubic metres gas per day, while more than 40mn cubic metres of gas is produced and exported,” he added.
The company representative added: “In Refinery Number 12, 1,080 and 600 tonnes of propane and butane [are] produced per day, respectively.”
Iran’s oil minister has openly admitted forging oil documents to hide the origin of Iranian cargoes of crude that might otherwise not find a market because of US sanctions.
“What we export is not under Iran’s name. The documents are changed over and over, as well as specifications,” Bijan Zanganeh was quoted as saying in parliament by the website of the state-owned National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC).
Since early last year, the US has been attempting to use sanctions to meet its stated goal of driving all Iranian crude shipments off world export markets. Earlier this week, Zanganeh described the ultra-aggressive economic policy as like waging a “war without blood”.
Working out how much oil Iran has continued to export on the grey market despite Washington’s efforts is a complex question for analysts.
On September 25, Reuters reported that three assessments based on tanker tracking showed that this month Iranian oil exports have risen sharply. “Exports are way up right now. We are seeing close to 1.5 million bpd in both crude and condensate so far this month,” Samir Madani, co-founder of TankerTrackers, told the news agency. “These are levels we haven’t seen in a year and a half.”
China, known as the biggest buyer of Iranian oil on the unhindered market before the US adopted its “zero tolerance” policy, will very likely be the key to Iran’s fortunes in oil sales in the months ahead. Analysts see Beijing as using its grey market decision-making on Iranian oil as a bargaining chip in its trade war dealings with the US Trump administration.
The US on September 24 renewed a sanctions waiver that allows Iraq to buy gas from Iran, while at the same time urging Baghdad to use the provided 60 days to take “meaningful actions” to reduce its energy dependence on neighbouring Tehran.
Washington has repeatedly extended the waiver for Iraq to use indispensable
43​ IRAN Country Report October 2020 www.intellinews.com