Baku, Azerbaijan, July 15
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iranian oil minister, Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said that the country would increase its oil export step by step, once the sanctions are lifted.
The process of lifting sanction will probably take about 5-6 months, Zanganeh said, adding in this period Iran will take measures to increase output.
Once the sanctions are lifted crude oil export will increase by at least 500,000 barrels per day, the minister said, official IRNA news agency reported July 15.
In a six-month period after the removal of sanctions the figure will reach one million barrels per day.
He also said that all foreign counterparts have expressed readiness for cooperation with Iran.
Once the second-largest producer in OPEC after Saudi Arabia, Iran's crude output has been reduced to about 2.8 million barrels a day, from 3.6 million b/d in 2011, by EU and US sanctions aimed at reining in the country's nuclear activities. Exports stand at about 1.1m b/d, half their pre-sanctions level.
Iran and P5 +1 (the US, UK, France, Russia, China and Germany) reached a historic agreement on Iran 's nuclear program July 14.
The negotiations ended with adoption of a joint comprehensive action plan. If Iran carries out this plan, the economic and financial sanctions earlier imposed on it by the UN Security Council, the US and EU will be lifted.
Zanganeh also confirmed that a large German delegation headed by Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel would be visiting Tehran on July 19 at the invitation of the Islamic Republic oil minister.
The delegation, will discuss the mode of cooperation between the two countries after the removal of sanctions.
Gabriel, who is also Germany 's vice chancellor, will meet with President Hassan Rouhani and Iranian Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh, Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian, Central Bank Governor Valiollah Seif as well as members of the chamber of commerce.
Zangeneh visited Berlin on May 7 and met with representatives of VW Group and Linde. He also held talks with small and medium-size enterprises and energy experts and discussed with Energy Minister Gabriel what opportunities lie ahead in the construction of Iran 's energy sector.
Before the tightening of sanctions four years ago, German exports to Iran amounted to four billion euros a year.
Germany has long been Iran 's key trade partner in Europe but relations have nosedived in recent years. In 2013, bilateral transactions plunged below two billion euros.
Last year, German exports to Iran surged 30 percent to reach 2.4 billion euros as a result of partial lifting of the Western sanctions.
Edited by CN