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26 June 2016 - 08:37

The Islamic Republic of Iran and the Spanish energy company, Repsol S.A., have signed an agreement that doubles Iranian oil exports to the European country.

Iranian media reports said Saturday that the deal allows Repsol to buy one million barrels of oil from Iran in July.

The deal between the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and Repsol comes after another Spanish buyer, Cepsa (Spanish Petroleum Company), reached an agreement earlier this month on the shipment of Iranian crude to Spain.

On June 11, the NIOC’s director for international affairs, Mohsen Qamsari announced that Iran had signed agreements for the sale of crude oil to European companies.

Iran’s oil exports are currently close to pre-sanction levels of around 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd), a recent report by Reuters said, citing shipping data by traders.

Iran and the permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany (P5+1) signed a nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), on July 14, last year, which took effect on January 16, and allows sanctions relief in return for curbs on Tehran’s nuclear program.

Qamsari further pointed to Iran’s export of oil to Europe and said that 80 percent of contracts on the exports of 600-700 bpd of Iran’s crude to Europe have been realized so far.

Latest market figures show that oil exports in April reached the highest level in over four years - another indication that the country is regaining the market share it lost as a result of the sanctions.

Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh said on June 13 that Iran would award a new generation of oil contracts within the next few months.

He also emphasized that Iran expects the upcoming awards to help increase its crude production by hundreds of thousands of barrels per day in the coming years.

News ID 188046