Oil Ministry's Promise: Oil Production Will Reach Four Million Barrels in September

A senior official in Iran's Oil Ministry promised that the country's oil production will reach four million barrels per day in the upcoming September, while referring to the signing of 11 cooperation agreements with reputable international companies. According to Mehr News Agency, Ali Kardar, Deputy Oil Minister and CEO of the National Iranian Oil Company, stated on Wednesday, July 13, that negotiations with 23 reputable oil and gas companies worldwide have led to the signing of 11 cooperation agreements in the post-JCPOA era. He announced that Iran's current oil production stands at 3.8 million barrels per day and is expected to reach four million barrels by September. The official also explained that the increase in oil production will occur in two phases: "In the first phase, we plan to increase crude oil production to pre-sanction levels, aiming for an increase in oil exports to at least two million barrels per day and restoring traditional buyers of Iranian oil and returning to previous markets. A significant portion of this increase in oil production has already been achieved." The CEO further elaborated on the second phase of increasing Iran's oil production, which includes plans for long-term increases in crude oil and gas production as part of the Sixth Five-Year Development Plan, aiming to attract both domestic and foreign investment to reach 4.5 million barrels per day and gas production of about 1.3 billion cubic meters per day. According to him, the long-term plan aims to increase oil exports to about 2.8 million barrels per day, with gas condensate production reaching about 950,000 barrels per day by the end of the plan. He noted that the sanctions imposed on Iran have caused a significant portion of existing investments to flow to Iran's regional competitors, effectively benefiting Iran's oil rivals. One day after the publication of OPEC's monthly report, two other international entities also released their latest assessments of Iran's oil production up to last month. OPEC reported Iran's oil production in June at 3 million 644 thousand barrels, a figure consistent with the International Energy Agency's report released on Wednesday. The International Energy Agency's report states that Iran's oil production has increased by up to 750,000 barrels per day since the lifting of sanctions in January, reaching 3 million 660 thousand barrels. The U.S. Energy Information Administration also assessed that Iran's oil production averaged 3 million 580 thousand barrels in the second quarter of 2016, reflecting an increase of 550 thousand barrels compared to the first quarter's average. Iran's daily oil production last year was 2.8 million barrels, which is one million barrels less than pre-sanction levels.