Tighter sanctions on Iran could cost Eni 'billions'

TEHRAN,Dec. 11 (MNA)--Eni SPA Chief Executive Officer Paolo Scaroni said tighter sanction on Iran could cost the Italian firm as much as $2 billion in crude oil owed to it by National Iranian Oil Co., Oil and Gas Journal reported. “We are more worried about the payments of crude that NIOC are making to us for our previous activities,” said Scaroni, referring to billions of dollars worth of contract work undertaken by Eni during 2001-09. However, Scaroni also expressed the belief that the payment in kind would be exempt from any sanctions regimes at the moment, saying, “We feel that this will be exempt from any ban. We feel there is a difference between importing crude and receiving crude.” “Yes, there is a problem in the quality of crude so we should make some shifts,” Scaroni said, adding that Iran’s crude makes up about 15% of Italy’s oil imports. Scaroni’s view is similar to other analysts who said EU sanctions on Iran's oil exports will hurt European refiners that rely on the country’s crude, particularly Greece, Italy, and Spain.