The United States won’t be able to bring Iranian oil exports to zero because the other producers can’t offset the loss of all of Iran’s oil barrels in an already tight market, Iran’s OPEC governor Hossein Kazempour Ardebili told Reuters on Friday.
According to Kazempour—whose position as Iran’s OPEC governor makes him the second most senior member after the oil minister at OPEC meetings—an already emerging “supply shortage” and little spare capacity virtually everywhere means that the United States can’t achieve its goal of bringing Iranian oil exports down to zero when sanctions on Iran’s oil industry return in early November.
“There is no spare capacity anywhere,” Kazempour told Reuters.
Earlier this week, Iran’s First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri said that Iran’s oil sales will “never reach zero,” the Iranian oil ministry’s news service Shana reported. The official admitted that Iranian oil exports would drop, but reiterated Iran’s position that the U.S. sanctions would not succeed in cutting off all of the country’s oil sales.
“The US is attempting to bring Iran’s oil sales to zero by imposing banking and transportation restrictions, and the administration, despite all the difficulties and hardships, is seeking solutions to quash their [US] plans,” Shana quoted Jahangiri as saying.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its monthly Oil Market Report on Thursday that due to falling supply from Venezuela and Iran, the market is tightening. It also said that oil prices are set to rise unless there is additional production increases elsewhere that will offset the supply losses.
“Evidence provided by tanker tracking data suggests that Iran’s exports have already fallen significantly but we must wait to see if the 500 kb/d of reductions seen so far will grow,” the IEA said, noting that Iran, Venezuela, and Libya could be the three primary drivers of further oil market tightening that could push Brent Crude prices to above $80 a barrel in the coming weeks and months.
Cloggie on Sat, 15th Sep 2018 3:03 pm
The higher the oil price, the better. Speeds up the transition.
Bring it on, Donald! Your actions are good for the European offshore wind industry.
Sissyfuss on Sat, 15th Sep 2018 3:42 pm
Don’t the Iranians know how much trouble they can get into by telling the truth? At the very least they’ll have to survive Trumps excoriating twits,, er tweets.
pointer on Sat, 15th Sep 2018 7:04 pm
Theres’ no spare capacity because we fossil fuel-guzzling hogs can’t imagine using less.
Buford T. Bustamonte on Sun, 16th Sep 2018 12:22 am
Testing, testing; let’s see if the world economy, in its fragile state, particularly for numerous emerging economies, can withstand increased energy costs associated with an attempt to initiate Iranian regime change via oil supply sanctions of X (to be determined as it unfolds beginning in Nov.) millions of barrels a day.
Should be an interesting test to go along with the one being orchestrated to find out what will happen with another 200 billion of Chinese products having tariffs soon to go into effect.
Any other tests? I for one like scientific tests, but these international one’s that can have enormous potential implications on the global economy are not as much fun, especially if shtf. But of course if it does, then I’m sure blame will be assigned to someone else. That is 100% guaranteed.