Iran boosts export muscle with new oil tankers

Iran has taken delivery of several new tankers from Chinese shipyards, giving it greater flexibility in maintaining oil exports in the face of Western sanctions, Reuters reported.

The sanctions, imposed by the United States and European Union to halt a nuclear programme they believe is a cover to develop atomic weapons, have hurt Iran's oil exports, leading to a plunge in its currency.

But Iranian crude oil imports rose in December to their highest since European Union sanctions took effect last July, helped in part by more tankers deployed.

Since the start of 2013, two supertankers have joined Iran's trading fleet, with another three new vessels having arrived in recent months, according to industry sources and shipping data. Each vessel has a maximum capacity of 2 million barrels of oil.

Iran's main tanker operator NITC has been blacklisted by the West, and the EU has imposed an outright ban on ship insurance provision.

Western sanctions halved Iran's oil exports in 2012 from 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) in late 2011, leading to billions of dollars in lost revenue.

While exports rose to 1.4 million bpd in December 2012, sales were expected to dip in January ahead of new U.S. sanctions, industry sources told Reuters last week.

Iran and world powers announced new talks on Tehran's nuclear programme on Feb. 26, but hopes of progress after Tuesday's announcement were tempered when an Iranian official said the West's goal in talking was to undermine the Islamic republic.