Iran to supply Europe with crude oil once sanctions lifted

© Flickr/ Pieter van Marion

    

Iran has reportedly signaled its readiness to start supplying crude oil to Europe after sanctions are lifted against it.

Tehran said on Sunday that it is ready to start exports of crude oil to Europe as soon as the economic sanctions against Iran are lifted, sources said.

In an interview with the Iranian news agency IRNA, Mohsen Qamsari, the director for international affairs of the National Iranian Oil Company, said that Iran can ship almost half of the supplies of crude previously consumed by the European market.

"The contracts will be clinched on the basis of spot deals until the European clients finish their existing annual import contracts and are ready for new contracts," Qamsari said.

He added that the Europeans have already voiced interest in resuming oil imports from Iran and that Tehran can increase oil supplies to pre-sanctions levels, "provided that the Europeans are ready for it."

At the same time, Qamsari said that even though Iran is trying to sell its oil in all markets, Asia will continue to be the country's top priority.

Iran's current oil production is estimated to stand at about 2.7 million barrels per day.

Tehran and the six world powers are still trying to reach a final nuclear deal that stipulates the lifting of a barrage of economic sanctions against Iran; in exchange, Tehran must restrict some of its uranium-enrichment activities.

The sides have until the end of June 2015 to finalize and ink the deal. A key area of anti-Iranian sanctions envisages a ban on purchase of crude oil from the Islamic Republic.