TEHRAN- Iran started the plan for boosting oil production by 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) following removal of the West-led sanctions against the country, National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Managing Director Rokneddin Javadi stated.

Iran should regain its share of the global oil market in the post-sanction time, the Shana News Agency quoted Javadi as saying on Monday.

International sanctions against Iran were lifted on Saturday after the United Nations nuclear agency declared Tehran has complied with the terms of the nuclear agreement. 

Iran’s share of global oil production is four percent which is a low figure as the country holds 10-15 percent of the world’s proven oil reserves, Javadi noted.

Iran, once OPEC’s second-largest producer after Saudi Arabia, is seeking to clear space for its gradual return to the market by lifting of sanctions.   

Western sanctions have cut Iran’s oil output to 2.7 million bpd from 3.9 million bpd and the country’s oil exports to around 1.1 million bpd from 2.5 million bpd.

Iran has already lined up buyers for its crude for when sanctions are lifted, the International Energy Agency said in November 2015.  

The IEA said Customers would include refiners in Italy, Greece and Spain who prefer to use Iranian crude as their baseload feedstock.

Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has vowed to reclaim the country’s share of global crude oil exports within months of sanctions being lifted and said Tehran will move quickly to open the doors to international oil companies to help boost production.  

Should sanctions be lifted, Iran’s oil exports would reach 2.3 million bpd, compared with around 1.1 million bpd today.  

In November 2015, Iran also introduced its long-awaited new model of oil contracts, known as the Integrated Petroleum Contract (IPC), in a Tehran conference.

The IPC will replace buy-back contracts. It is expected to offer more flexible terms on oil price fluctuations and investment risks to make the sector more financially attractive.  

MA/