Iran hits crude comeback trail
Crude production has started to creep up in recent months, but much still hinges on the relaxation of US sanctions
The smoke signals of diplomacy over the Mid-East Gulf may be ambiguous, but Iran’s oil ambitions are not. Veteran oil minister Bijan Zanganeh intends 4.5mn bl/d in crude and condensate production and 2.3mn bl/d in exports by the next Iranian year, beginning on 21 March. This depends critically on the relaxation of sanctions—but is the country’s oil industry ready to meet the challenge? The previous period of sanctions, which ended with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), saw production recover from January 2016 much more sharply than many analysts had expected. It was possible to restart fields that had been shut down in a relatively orderly way without suffering damage or deteri
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
