Deciphering Iran’s oil exports; Have the sanctions decreased?

According to the exclusive report of Energy Press; According to domestic and foreign experts, one of the achievements of Shahid Ebrahim Raisi’s government is the increase in Iran’s oil production and export during the nearly three years of the 13th government. So, Al Jazeera Qatar news channel in its latest report on the pretext of the martyrdom of Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi and Hossein Amirabdollahian, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Martyr, and their companions, about the achievements of the Islamic Republic of Iran during the period of the president “Shahid Johor” to revive the production and export of crude oil and restore the status of this The country noted in the world markets.
Recently, Iran’s oil minister, Javad Oji, announced the increase in exports and said: “The US Senate recently admitted that despite the imposition of 600 sanctions against Iran’s oil exports, the export of this product has increased from 300,000 barrels to more than 2 million barrels. ”
Iran’s oil production (2021-2023)
Iran’s oil production witnessed a rapid growth during the presidency of Ebrahim Raisi, which lasted for three years or a little less, before the announcement of his martyrdom in the helicopter accident. Data shows that Iran’s oil production has seen a significant gradual decline from 3.725 million barrels per day in 2009 to 2.356 million barrels per day in 2019. Of course, an exception in this case was the year of the outbreak of Corona (2020), in which Iran’s crude oil production decreased to 1.991 million barrels per day due to quarantine conditions and reduced demand and exports.
Also, Iran’s oil production in the first year of Seyed Ebrahim Raisi’s presidency (2021) increased by 20% to 2,392,000 barrels, while this figure was around 1,991 million barrels per day in 2020. Also, the production of 2021 compared to the production of 2019 (2.356 million barrels per day) increased by only 1.5%. In fact, Iran’s oil production continued to increase in the two years after the president, increasing by 6.7 percent annually to 2.554 million barrels per day in 2022. This figure has increased by 11.8% or 301,000 barrels per day last year (2023), bringing the total to 2.859 million barrels per day in 2023, according to annual data published by OPEC.
Iran’s production in 2024
The data of 2024 indicates an average increase in Iran’s production over 4 months to 3.184 million barrels per day, which is an increase of 23% or equivalent to 603 thousand barrels per day compared to the average of the comparative months of 2023 (2.582 million barrels per day). has registered Iran’s oil production in January 2024 increased by 23.7% to 3.161 million barrels per day, which was about 2.554 million barrels per day in the same period of 2023.
Also, Iran’s oil production in February 2024 is 3.161 million barrels per day, while this amount was around 2.574 million barrels per day in the same period of 2023. Iran’s crude oil production also reached 3.1 million 198 thousand barrels per day in March with a growth of 24%, which was about 2 million 625 thousand barrels per day in the same period of 2023. The increase in Iran’s oil production continued until April 2025 (the last month before the martyrdom of the president) by 22.3% or equivalent to 587 thousand barrels per day and reached a total of 3.212 million barrels per day.
According to OPEC data, Iran’s oil production has experienced a 60% increase in the period from August 2021 to April 2024 during the period of President Raisi’s presidency and while the Western sanctions against Iran’s oil continued.
Iran’s oil exports
The jump in Iran’s oil production is also reflected in the average export. According to the data of Kepler Institute research unit, during the first four months of 2024, it reached 1.537 million barrels per day and increased by 39% compared to the average of 1.106 million barrels per day in the same period of 2023.
In January 2024, Iran’s crude oil exports reached 1.34 million barrels per day, while this figure was around 1.05 million barrels per day in the same period of 2023. Also, exports rose 12 percent in February to 1.54 million bpd, up from about 1.38 million bpd in the same period in 2023.
Exports rose 94.5 percent to 1.67 million barrels per day in March, compared to 0.86 million barrels per day in the same month in 2023. Overall, Iran’s oil exports continued to grow by 40 percent to 1.57 million barrels per day by April 2024, compared to 1.12 million barrels per day in the same period in 2023.
The jump in Iran’s exports in 2024 will take place despite the tightening of Western sanctions against Tehran due to its nuclear program and support for the axis of resistance. Despite the Western sanctions and their effects, Iran plans to increase its oil production to 5.7 million barrels per day by 2028.