Iran Returns to 3rd Place in OPEC by Overtaking UAE: US Energy Department
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The US Department of Energy said Iran returned to the third place in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) by overtaking the United Arab Emirates with producing 2.93 million barrels of oil per day (bpd) in the 3rd quarter of 2023.
The Energy Information Administration (EIA), affiliated with the US Department of Energy, put Iran’s average oil output in the 3rd quarter of the current year at 2.93 million, rising by 190,000 barrels of oil per day compared to the 2nd quarter of 2023.
Iran had produced 2.74 million barrels of oil per day in the second quarter of 2023 (March 21 to June 22).
According to this report, following the US unilateral exit from Iran’s nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in May 2018 and re-imposition of sanctions, Iran’s oil output volume significantly decreased. Iran, which was once considered the second largest producer of oil in OPEC, was relegated to 5th place after Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.
But by offsetting the impact of sanctions, and especially with the drastic measures taken in the administration of President Ebrahim Raisi, Iran’s oil output was revitalized over the past two years and could overtake the United Arab Emirates to move up to the third place in OPEC.
