ran’s draft budget for 2024-2025, presented to the parliament, reveals a significant decline in oil and gas export revenues, and a surge in domestic energy prices. The bill outlines a projection of 1.35 million barrels per day for oil exports at an average price of €65 per barrel (approximately $71) …
Read More »Iran Wastes Huge Oil Reserves Due To Gas Shortage
Iran’s Chamber of Commerce’s Energy Commission head, Arash Najafi, warns that the natural gas shortage not only affects many sectors but also threatens Iran’s oil fields. He emphasized that without re-injecting gas into oil deposits, some fields might become unproductive, leading to substantial economic losses for the country’s oil sector. …
Read More »Iran Nurtures Ambitions For The Venezuelan Oil Market
Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency has stated that Tehran envisions to boost its oil exports to Venezuela, with a target of 860,000 barrels per day within three years. This plan involves not only exporting oil but also repairing Venezuelan refineries to facilitate this export. The goal is to restore Iran’s …
Read More »China Leaves Iran Out Of Major Investment Projects
Despite close political relations with China, Iran has been largely left out of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative and other regional investments, amid US sanctions. China is connected to Southeast and South Asia, Central Asia, the Pacific Ocean, Africa, and Europe through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive …
Read More »The U.S.-Iran Prisoner Swap: Unraveling Impacts on Gulf Security and Oil Dynamics
The recent agreement between the United States and Iran could portend well for regional security—or it could reinforce existing divisions and promote further escalatory behavior from each side, with significant economic consequences in either case. The recently announced prisoner swap between the United States and Iran has spurred debates about how it …
Read More »Iran-Iraq competition in regional maritime and overland transit corridors
In recent years, Iraq has become one of the leading destinations for Chinese investments in the Middle East and a crucial link in Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). To capitalize on its geostrategic location and central position within the Chinese BRI, Iraq is seeking to develop a sprawling new 54-square-kilometer port …
Read More »Saudi Arabia-Iran normalization and possible bilateral energy relations
Introduction In a breakthrough deal, brokered by China, Saudi Arabia and Iran have agreed on the resumption of diplomatic relations and the mutual opening of embassies, a move that could change the balance of power in the Middle East and restore stability in the region. Under the agreement reached, the …
Read More »The Future of Russian-Uzbekistani Energy Relations
In February 2023, Uzbekistani President Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced an energy package valued at over $1 billion to ease the country’s heating and electricity needs (Tashkent Times, February 8). In this, while Russia is considered a key player in providing Tashkent with much-needed oil and natural gas products, Uzbekistan also hopes …
Read More »Iran-Saudi Agreement: In Search of Stable Oil Exports and New Relations
As a “neutral” power seeking to distance itself from the Middle East’s various geopolitical rivalries, China has supported reconciliation and peace to stabilize its access to the region’s resources. The relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia has been fraught with tension for decades, with each side accusing the other of interference in …
Read More »Saudi Aramco’s U.S. Investments: A Win-Win Template for Bilateral Energy Engagement
As Saudi Arabia has grappled with its Vision 2030 reform plan and its transition away from fossil fuels, one international partner of choice in the energy sector has emerged: the United States In recent years, many countries in the Middle East region have concluded that their continued economic dependence on …
Read More »