Iran - now it gets harder
Iran has made the big post-sanctions output gains. Now it must make its upstream attractive to outside investors
In October, Tehran signed the first upstream deal under its new Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC). The identity of the counterparty was not the expected foreign oil company-but instead a local firm, Persia Oil & Gas Industry Development Company (POGIDC), a subsidiary of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's Setad, a holding company. It was a sign of progress. Then, at the end of November, Iran agreed to a new Opec quota from January 2017 of 3.797m barrels day. That's a virtual cut from the near 4m b/d Iran claims as its baseline, but 90,000 b/d more than it produced in October. A political fudge therefore allows for Iran to keep adding output. Since sanctions were lifted in early 2016 production has
Also in this section
13 March 2026
Brussels is again weighing a cap on gas prices amid the Hormuz crisis, but the measure could backfire by deterring the LNG cargoes Europe urgently needs
12 March 2026
Emergency oil stocks provide a last line of defence to oil market shocks, so the IEA’s unprecedented 400m bl release represents something of a double-edged sword
12 March 2026
LPG could rapidly expand access to clean cooking across Africa and prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution each year, but infrastructure shortages and regulatory barriers are slowing investment and market growth
11 March 2026
Missiles over Dubai and disruption in Hormuz are testing the emirate’s reputation—and shaking the energy hub at the centre of the Gulf economy
