Baku, Azerbaijan, May 5
By Fatih Karimov - Trend:
The National Iranian Oil Company has denied reports about the country exporting crude oil to Albania.
NIOC director for international affairs Mohsen Qamsari said the country has exported crude oil to some EU nations, but no crude oil consignment has been exported to Albania, Iran's Mehr news agency reported on May 5.
Currently, Iran exports around one million barrels of oil per day, he said, adding that the volume of exports will increase if the demand rises.
The International Energy Agency's monthly report revised February's global crude imports from Iran upwards by 240,000 bpd to 1.65 million barrels per day, the highest since June 2012.
It said importers of Iranian crude in March included Albania and Syria in addition to regular buyers China, India, South Korea, Japan and Turkey.
Iran's crude oil exports have surged to their highest in 20 months, far exceeding a 1 million barrel-per-day limit set by the West under an interim deal on curbing Tehran's nuclear program Reuters reported on April 11.
Iran's crude exports have averaged 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd) in April, down from almost 1.3 million bpd in March. That would bring exports back down to the average 2013 level of Iranian imports.
Under an interim deal signed in November between Iran and six world powers - known as the Joint Plan of Action (JPOA) - that came into effect on Jan. 20, Iran's exports are supposed to be held to an average 1 million bpd through July 20.