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Tehran. — Iran has slashed crude oil production to its lowest level in four decades as storage tanks and vessels are almost completely full due to a drop in exports and refinery run cuts caused by the coronavirus pandemic, industry data showed.
Total onshore crude stocks surged to 54 million barrels in April from 15 million barrels in January, and swelled further to 63 million barrels in June, according to FGE Energy.
Market intelligence firm Kpler estimated Iranian average onshore crude storage for June to be approximately 66 million barrels.
That is about 85 percent of available onshore storage capacity.
“However, it will technically not be possible to fill tanks to 100 percent given technical constraints at storage tanks and potential infrastructure bottlenecks,” said Homayoun Falakshahi, a senior analyst at Kpler.
Tensions between Tehran and Washington have ratcheted up since 2018, when the United States withdrew from a 2015 nuclear pact between Iran and six major powers and President Donald Trump reimposed sanctions on Iran, hammering vital oil exports.
The exact number of Iranian vessels on floating storage is a bit of a black box as they have all turned off their AIS signals. — Reuters.
Online Reporter