After Lifting Sanctions, Iran's First Oil Shipment Heads to the Baltic Sea

According to trade sources and shipping statistics, a giant oil tanker carrying Iranian oil set sail on June 27 towards the port of Gdansk in Poland, five days ago. This is Iran's first shipment to this part of the Baltic Sea following the lifting of sanctions. Reuters reported on Friday, July 1, that it is still unclear whether the buyer of this oil shipment is the company 'PKN Orlen' or 'Grupa Lotos' of Poland, or whether the shipment will remain in Poland and be transferred to Germany via pipeline from Gdansk. Iran is in the process of reclaiming its share of the oil market after the removal of international sanctions. Regardless of the final destination, this is the first Iranian oil shipment to reach this region of the Baltic Sea since sanctions were lifted in January, which will intensify competition between Iran, Russia, and Saudi Arabia in the oil market. Reports received by Reuters indicate that the giant oil tanker 'Atlantas', carrying two million barrels of crude oil, departed from the Kharg oil export terminal on June 27 for Gdansk, Poland. According to informed sources, giant tankers cannot dock in Gdansk, but their oil can be unloaded at this port using smaller vessels. Polish refineries, which are almost entirely dependent on Russian oil, have benefited from competition among producers and low oil prices and are negotiating to find alternatives to Russian oil. Last year, Lotos began purchasing oil from Saudi Arabia, which Moscow described as a significant challenge in response. 'PKN Orlen', another Polish refinery, recently signed a contract with Saudi Aramco, marking the first long-term oil purchase agreement from a producer in the Persian Gulf. Reuters writes that both Polish companies are interested in having Iranian oil in their refineries. While Saudi Arabia is trying to add new customers to its list of oil buyers, Iran is also attempting to regain former customers and find new buyers. In June, the Dutch-British oil company Royal Dutch Shell resumed purchasing oil from Iran. Tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia have rendered OPEC's efforts to find a way to raise oil prices fruitless. Before sanctions were imposed, Iran exported about 2.2 million barrels of oil daily. It is expected that Iran's oil exports in July will reach approximately 2.1 million barrels per day, which represents a 70% increase compared to exports in the same month last year.