National Iranian Oil Co News

Iran is running short of options to replace its ageing fleet of tankers and keep oil exports flowing because renewed U.S. sanctions are making potential sellers and flag registries wary of doing business with Tehran, Western and Iranian sources said.Since U.S. President Donald Trump reimposed sanctions in November, exploratory talks with South Korea for up to 10 new supertankers have stalled and Panama has also removed at least 21 Iranian tankers from its registry forcing Tehran to put the vessels under its own flag…

A vessel carrying 2 million barrels of Iranian oil discharged the crude into a bonded storage tank at the port of Dalian in northeast China on Monday, according to Refinitiv Eikon data and a shipping agent with knowledge of the matter.Iran, the third-largest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), is finding fewer takers for its crude ahead of U.S. sanctions on its oil exports that will go into effect on Nov. 4. The country previously held oil in storage at Dalian during the last round of sanctions in 2014 that was later sold to buyers in South Korea and India.The very large crude carrier Dune, operated by National Iranian Tanker Co…

Two tankers carrying Iranian condensate, a type of ultra-light oil, have been floating off the United Arab Emirates for about a month as demand for the oil fell ahead of U.S. sanctions.The tankers, carrying about 2.4 million barrels of South Pars condensate combined, have been floating off the UAE since August after South Korea halted imports from Iran while China's demand dropped during summer, according to several industry sources and shipping data.The build-up in Iranian oil supplies underscores the pressure that Iran is facing as Washington aims to bring Iranian oil exports down to zero to force Tehran to re-negotiate a nuclear deal.The Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Felicity loaded condensate at Iran's Assaluyeh port in early August and then set ail for Jebel Ali in the UAE…

Royal Dutch Shell has bought only three cargoes of Iranian oil since sanctions were eased a year ago, a small fraction of what it used to buy and an indication of the legal difficulties and high prices that still hamper the trade. The Anglo-Dutch firm did not give a reason for the drop in purchases, which were disclosed in its annual report, and the company declined to comment further. But oil trading sources say Iranian oil is often too expensive and in any case remaining sanctions make dealing with the Islamic Republic a legal minefield. As an example of sanctions-related difficulties, Shell's filings showed it had to disclose payments of only a few hundred dollars when its employees bought tickets with Iranian airlines.

Iran, OPEC's No. 3 producer, is expected to raise its oil exports in March to around 1.65 million barrels per day from 1.5 million bpd a month earlier on the back of higher crude shipments to Europe, two industry sources told Reuters on Thursday. State-run National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) is expected to ship around 250,000-300,000 bpd to Europe this month after it finalised term deals with France's Total and Spanish refiner Cepsa, effective from March 1, said the sources, who are familiar with Iran's exports. The French oil major has a contract to buy about 200,000 bpd, while Cepsa's deal was for about 35,000 bpd, one source said. Total is expected to lift at least 5 million barrels in March, the source added.

U.S. lifts 2012 Iran sanctions against three trader companies; Kuo Oil seeks to load two Iranian fuel oil cargoes. Kuo Oil, a Singapore-based oil trading company, is seeking ships to load Iranian fuel oil, according to a shipping broker report, now that it is finally clear of U.S. trade sanctions imposed in 2012 for trading with the country. The United States lifted the sanctions on Saturday against Kuo, also known as Kuo International Bunkering, as part of its broader relaxation of sanctions against Iran for compliance with an agreement to curtail its controversial nuclear programme. The sanctions were handed down on Kuo in January 2012 for providing over $25 million in refined petroleum products to Iran between late 2010 and early 2011.

Oil imports from Iran at 220,000 bpd in year to March 31. U.S. pressured India not to raise annual Iran oil imports. India halted oil imports from Iran for the first time in at least a decade in March as New Delhi responded to U.S. pressure to keep its shipments from Tehran within sanction limits during the last month of negotiations on a preliminary nuclear deal. Iran and six world powers have ramped up the pace of negotiations this week ahead of the Tuesday deadline for reaching an initial accord on a final nuclear agreement. Both sides have warned it was crucial to overcome differences that could still wreck any chance at a deal.

Iran is sidestepping Western sanctions and managing to sell hundreds of thousands of tonnes of fuel oil every month through companies based in the U.S.-allied United Arab Emirates, trading sources told Reuters. The U.S. and EU sanctions that came into force in 2012 prohibit the import, purchase and transport of Iranian petroleum products to pressure Tehran to halt its disputed nuclear programme. Washington has also pressed its allies around the world to clamp down on the shipping of Iranian oil products. But Tehran has been using innovative methods to circumvent the restrictions, several Middle East-based trading sources said. They include tankers switching off their tracking systems…

A U.S. proposal to sanction Iran’s state-owned oil company and its main tanker fleet may ensnare any person or business in the world involved in purchasing or shipping Iranian oil, according to a report from Bloomberg. Pressure is mounting on Iran’s nuclear program, as the prospect of an attack from Israel grows beyond rhetoric. In turn, the pressure is rising to force Iran to back down. The Senate Banking Committee unanimously adopted a measure Feb. 2 to compel the administration to investigate links between Iran’s crude-oil supply chain and its powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, an elite military unit that the U.S. has sanctioned for weapons proliferation, terrorism support and human-rights abuses. The move would essentially “black list” Iranian oil.

Iran's National Iranian Oil Co. (NIO.YY) hopes to finalize deals with oil majors Total SA (TOT), Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSB.LN) and Repsol YPF SA (REP) towards the end of March to develop phase 11 and 13 of the country's giant South Pars gas field. Albawaba.com reports that South Pars Oil and Gas Co. would sign the contracts on the two phases sometime this week. In 2004, NIOC signed a framework deal with Total for the upstream development of phase 11 to develop liquefied natural gas in the Pars LNG project. Two LNG trains would produce 10 million metric tons annually and investment would be between $1.2 billion to $1.4 billion. NIOC also signed a similar framework deal in 2004 with Royal Dutch Shell and Repsol to form the Persian LNG production company…

Shell, Total SA and Repsol YPF SA will soon sign contracts with Iran to develop two phases of the Islamic republic's offshore South Pars gas field, Forbes reported. The contracts concern phases 11 and 13 of South Pars, with the production of liquefied natural gas (LNG) scheduled for export. Total will be working on phase 11 in a project called Pars LNG, while Shell and Repsol will be working on phase 13 under the name Persian LNG. The firms will be operating jointly with the National Iranian Oil Co. Investment for each phase has been estimated at between $1.2 and $1.5 billion. (Source: Forbes)

Royal Dutch Shell PLC is to decide in 2007 whether to invest in Iran's Persian LNG project, its chief executive said on May 4. Speaking at a press conference, Jeroen van der Veer said "we are aware of the short-term developments," referring to international tensions surrounding the country's nuclear program. But he added "we intend to make a decision in the year 2007." In 2004, the National Iranian Oil Co. signed a framework deal in 2004 with Shell and Repsol YPF SA to form the Persian LNG production company, linked to the development of phase 13 of South Pars and valued at $1.5b. But no final investment has been made so far. Regarding Shell's plans in neighboring Iraq, van der Veer said the company would need a legal framework on petroleum in place in the country before investing.