Iran Crude Exports Rise since June 15

Iran has exported 36 million barrels of crude oil since June 15, a tanker tracking firm said on Sunday, as shipments accelerated following the easing of US maritime restrictions. In a post on X, TankerTrackers.com said there was "roughly an equal amount still afloat in Iran." Since the announcement of the US-Iran agreement on June 15, "Iranian-linked tankers and cargo ships have become noticeably more active globally," advocacy and monitoring group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) has said.

TankerTrackers.com said on Friday that Iran had exported nearly 18 million barrels of crude over the five days after the United States lifted its naval blockade of the country's southern ports and coastal waters. It estimated the value of those shipments at about US$1.44 billion. The exports mark a sharp recovery after Iran's crude shipments were largely suspended from mid-April to mid-June because of the naval blockade. The US Navy formally ended the blockade of Iranian ports and coastal areas on Thursday, June 18, following a directive from President Donald Trump.

Before the blockade was lifted, Iran had accumulated more than 60 million barrels of crude oil in floating storage off its southern coast, according to estimates by shipping intelligence companies. Iran and the United States on Sunday launched the first round of negotiations over the war, launched by a US-Israeli coalition against Iran in late February. The talks follow a memorandum of understanding signed separately by President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, extending the US-Iran ceasefire by 60 days and establishing a framework for future negotiations on Tehran's nuclear program and other key issues.

Iran has been under US sanctions over its nuclear program for years. Under one provision of the memorandum, Washington granted Tehran a sanctions waiver on the second day of the 60-day negotiation period. Commenting on the easing of maritime restrictions on oil exports, National Iranian Oil Company CEO Hamid Bovard said on Sunday that, "In the first stage, Iranian vessels crossed the previously restricted boundary and headed toward their designated destinations."

Bovard did not provide shipment figures but said that, "Over the past few days, crude oil shipments equivalent to nearly half of the country's monthly exports have been sent abroad, and with the full implementation of the memorandum of understanding, oil exports will continue in full." Bovard also said energy-sector negotiations had focused on investment and the removal of oil-related sanctions. He added that Iran had proposed amendments to the US side and expressed hope that conditions would allow those proposals to be implemented.

In an article published in the state-owned “Iran” newspaper, Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said on Sunday that Iran's oil industry would offer the "biggest scene of investment opportunities for the global economy" if an agreement with the United States is reached. Paknejad said that if Western parties benefiting from the agreement remained committed to its spirit, Iran's oil industry would serve as the testing ground for its implementation. - Iran Daily