Israel launched raids on Iran, on Friday, targeting nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military leaders, at the beginning of what it warned as a lengthy operation to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon.
The Iranian National Oil Refining and Distribution Company said that oil refining and storage facilities were not damaged during the attacks.
Here are some facts about the Iranian energy sector, its exports, and the impact of previous Western sanctions:
- Penalties and OPEC
Data of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) The Iranian oil production reached its peak in the 1970s, recording a record level at 6 million barrels per day in 1974, equivalent to more than 10% of global production at the time.
In 1979, the United States imposed the first package of Penalties On Tehran, the latter has since become a target of US and European sanctions.
The United States tightened sanctions in 2018 after the President’s withdrawal Donald Trump From the nuclear agreement during its first term, which led to the decline in Iranian oil exports to nearly scratch in some months.
However, Iranian exports returned gradually under the administration of the former US President جهنيAs analysts said that the effectiveness of the implementation of the sanctions has declined, and that Tehran succeeded in circumventing them.
Iran is exempt from the production restrictions imposed by OPEC on its members.
- Who is the main buyer of Iranian oil?
Iran’s exports of crude oil have risen to the highest in years, reaching about 1.8 million barrels per day during the past few months, the highest rate since 2018, driven by strong demand from China.
Beijing insists that it does not recognize the penalties imposed on its trading partners, and is considered the private refining refineries in China, the main buyer of Iranian oil. The United States has recently included some of these refineries on the Treasury sanctions list.
There are no strong indications that these sanctions have tangiblely affected Iranian oil flows to China.
Tehran has managed to circumvent the sanctions for years through transfers from one ship to another and hide the locations of its carriers.
- Production and infrastructure
Iran is the third largest oil producer in OPEC, producing about 3.3 million barrels per day, equivalent to about 3% of global production.
It also produces 1.3 million barrels per day of condensate and other fluids, representing only 4.5% of global supplies.
According to the data of “Kepler”, Iran issued about 1.8 million barrels per day of crude and condensed oil in May, which is close to its peak exports in 2018.
The FGE Consulting company states that Iran repeats about 2.6 million barrels per day of crude oil and condensate, and the same amount of crude oil, condensate and refining products is almost exported.
Iran produces – according to this company – about 34 billion cubic feet of gas per day, equivalent to 7% of global production, and the gas is completely consumed locally.
Iranian oil and gas production facilities are mainly concentrated in the southwest, where oil facilities are located in Khuzestan region and gas facilities in Bushehr, while condensate from the giant southern Pars field.
90% of Iranian crude oil is being exported on the island of exit.
Analysts believe that Saudi Arabia and some OPEC members can compensate for any decrease in Iranian supplies by exploiting their surplus production capacity. Although some producers are currently working to raise production goals, their reserve capabilities suffer from great pressure.