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OPEC chief hails progress in Iran’s oil sector despite sanctions
Al Ghais said in a letter addressed to former Iranian oil minister Javad Owji that the minister had achieved major breakthroughs at the helm of the petroleum industry in a key OPEC country, Press TV wrote.
He said Owji had elevated Iran’s oil industry in a significant manner in the past three years, according to a Persian translation of the letter published in the Iranian media.
The remarks came more than a week after Owji was replaced by Mohsen Paknejad as part of a government change in Iran.
During his time in office, Owji managed to increase Iran’s oil exports and production to levels not seen since the country came under US sanctions in 2018.
Iran’s oil production has reached 3.271 million barrels per day (bpd), according to latest data by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.
That comes as exports have reached well beyond an average of 1.5 million bpd in recent months, up from just 0.3 million bpd reported in 2018 when Washington toughened its sanctions on Iran.
New Oil Minister Paknejad has promised to follow up on Owji’s plans to further increase Iran’s crude oil production to meet a target of 4 million bpd next year.