$30 Million Increase in Daily Oil Export Income

An agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC producers last year to cut crude supplies has raised Iran's oil revenues by $30 million per day, a deputy oil minister said on Sunday.

"Tehran's daily oil revenues increased $30 million since the Vienna agreement," Amirhossein Zamaninia was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.

Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries clinched a historic deal in the Austrian capital on Nov. 30 to slash oil production by 1.2 million barrels per day, effective in the first half of this year. The following month, some producers outside the 13-nation bloc joined the pact by promising to add 600,000 bpd to the cuts.

Oil prices have since soared by around 20%, giving oil producers a better economic prospect for the year compared to 2016 when Brent, the international crude benchmark, collapsed to a 13-year lows at $27 per barrel, punishing oil states and companies with severe budget deficits.

Zamaninia said Iran and other OPEC members will continue to discuss the crude market to maintain balance in supply and demand.

He asserted that Tehran and Riyadh's consensus within the framework of the Vienna agreement to cut back production had helped in rebalancing the market.

"Despite political differences, the two sides negotiated the OPEC deal in line with the collective interest of all members of the organization," the deputy minister said.

Brent traded at $56.63 a barrel on Friday, drawing support from a report by the International Energy Agency that OPEC nations fulfilled 90% of the promised cuts in January.

Under the OPEC accord, Iran is allowed to produce an average of 3.8 million bpd in the first six months of the year. Iran says it is now producing 3.9 million barrels per day of crude oil and condensates.

The Oil Ministry reported at the weekend that Iran's light crude gained 40 cents in the week to Feb. 3 to settle at $53.01 per barrel. The country's heavy crude also traded up 77 cents at $52.07 per barrel in the week. Both crudes have steadily held above $50 since the beginning of the year.

OPEC's basket of thirteen crudes stood at $52.76 a barrel on Thursday, the group's calculations showed on Friday.

source: Financial Tribune