Japanˈs Iranian Crude Oil Imports Doubled In May, Defying US Sanctions

Tehran, June 29, IRNA – Latest Japan Finance Ministry report shows that country doubled its crude oil imports from Iran is May, 2013, compared to same month last year. According to the data released by the Japanese Ministry of Finance on Thursday, Japan - one of Iranˈs Asian crude oil customers - imported 1.09 million kiloliters, equivalent to about 222,000 barrels per day (bpd), of Iranian oil in May. The figure was up from about 523,000 kiloliters in May 2012, Bloomberg reported. The report added that Japan’s crude oil imports from Iran in April were about 530,000 kiloliters. On March 13, the US had granted new waivers to Japan and 10 other countries from the sanctions on Iran. Meanwhile, Iran’s crude oil exports to its top customer, China, also saw a nearly a 50-percent increase in May from April on a daily basis. Iran sold 2.36 million tons of crude to China in May, equivalent to about 555,557 bpd, according to data from Chinaˈs General Administration of Customs. The increase in Chinaˈs imports of Iranian crude came just before the United States renewed the countryˈs waiver on US sanctions aimed at cutting Iranˈs oil revenues. On June 13, a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Iran’s crude output had risen by 30,000 barrels a day in May to 2.68 million barrels a day. Another factor leading to the 66% increased Iranian crude oil exports was Indiaˈs 80% increased May oil imports from Iran compared to that countryˈs April imports from Iran. India has in May imported 213.500 thousand barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian oil. Oil industry experts also argue that replacement of a countryˈs crude oil in another countryˈs industries is not as easy as it sounds, as the oil quality of different countries vary and such a switching would necessitate major changes in the importing countryˈs industrial machinery. At the beginning of 2012, the United States and the European Union (EU) imposed new sanctions on Iran’s oil and financial sectors. The illegal US-engineered sanctions were imposed based on the unfounded accusation that Iran is pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program. Iran rejects the allegation, arguing that as a committed signatory to Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency, it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes./end