Iran eyes increasing oil production to 5M bpd

Iran hasn’t abandoned plans to increase oil production to more than 5 million barrels per day, despite the lack of progress in negotiations with world powers on a comprehensive nuclear deal in 2015, Report informs referring to Bloomberg.

“Plans are in place to increase oil output to more than 5 million barrels a day,” said Mohsen Khojastehmehr, managing director of the National Iranian Oil Co., according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency. He provided no details or time frame for the target.

Iran’s daily production capacity is set to reach 4 million barrels by March, the end of the present Iranian calendar year, he said.

Iran pumped around the same amount of crude before former US President Donald Trump abandoned the 2015 nuclear deal in and reimposed tough economic sanctions that also targeted the nation’s energy sectors. Iran hasn’t been close to its peak crude output level of 6 million barrels since the 1970s.

Negotiations between Tehran and world powers aimed at reviving the nuclear accord are set to resume in Vienna next week. The original deal allowed Iran some sanctions relief, including on the oil sector, in exchange for curbs on its atomic activities.

Meanwhile, Tehran has made it clear that it welcomes foreign investment in its oil industry. In fact, a couple of months ago, Oil Minister Javad Ovji said that the government is developing plans to attract about $145 billion of new investment - both domestic and foreign - in its oil and gas industry over the next eight years.

On November 29, Iran and six world powers agreed to resume negotiations to revive the nuclear deal with Iran.