Iran looks to Asia for sanction relief
European firms will be wary of doing business with Iran under US sanctions, but China and India are among states which won’t back off
The unilateral US decision in May to impose stringent new sanctions on Iran and withdraw from the international Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) has prompted widespread discussion that more than 1m barrels a day of oil output will be lost. But oil industry and shipping officials suggest that the near-term shortfall, if any, may be less than many fear; although the longer-term effects on Iran's oil and gas sector are likely to be very negative. The JCPOA was agreed in 2015, and the following year Iranian oil production reached its highest level since just before the 1979 Iranian Revolution, at 4.6m b/d including condensates and natural gas liquids, according to the BP Statistical Re
Also in this section
24 March 2026
It is an unusual story of out with the new and in with the old, as America First Refining shows the US going back to trusted energy security developments
23 March 2026
A complex and sometimes contradictory web of factors that include unpredictable oil prices, the globalisation of LNG markets, the expansion of Middle Eastern sovereign capital and the growth of datacentre demand will shape the energy landscape beyond 2026
23 March 2026
The Strait of Hormuz crisis highlights how key waterways can become global chokepoints
20 March 2026
Attacks on key oil and LNG assets across the Gulf mean a prolonged supply disruption, with damage to Qatar’s export capacity undermining confidence in the global gas system






