Baku, Azerbaijan, May 10
By Fatih Karimov – Trend:
Iran’s oil revenues (excluding condensates) reached 720 trillion rials (about $24 billion) last fiscal year (ended March 20), Ali Tayebnia, Iran's minister of economic affairs and finance, said.
This is while the country’s oil exports surged to the highest level following the removal of international sanctions against Tehran in January 2016, Tayebnia said, Mehr news agency reported May 10.
Before imposition of sanctions on Iran in 2012, the country was exporting 2.5 million barrels per day (mb/d) of oil and gas condensate, but the figure halved due to the sanctions.
The removal of sanctions led to an increase in oil exports to 2.65 mb/d, but the oil price last year was over two times less than in 2012.
Last month, Mohammad Bagher Nobakht, head of Management and Planning Organization of Iran, said the country’s oil revenues from March 2013 to March 2017, which covers Hassan Rouhani’s presidency, reached $157 billion compared to $251 billion from March 2009 to March 2013, which covers the second term of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s presidency.
Tayebnia further said the Islamic Republic needs to attract $65 billion worth of foreign investment per year, in order to materialize the development targets set by the country’s sixth development plan (2016-2021).
This is while the volume of foreign investment in Iran over the last fiscal year reached $3.124 billion, according to Iran’s Deputy Economic Affairs and Finance Minister Mohammad Khazaei.
Although nuclear sanctions on Tehran have been removed following the implementation of the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action aka nuclear deal), most of European banks still appear reluctant to do business with Iran over concerns on running afoul of US regulations.