Iran swapped over 2 million barrels of oil from Caspian neighbors
Since the August 2017, the volume of Caspian oil swap operation in Iranian port of Neka has reached 2.3 million barrels, reports Financial Tribune referring to the director of Iranian Oil Pipeline and Telecommunications Company Seyyed Hamid Hosseyni. Totally, 47 vessels of various capacity have unloaded oil in the terminal storage reservoirs of the seagate in northern Iran. The swap transactions are carried out twice a month. The swapped crude is transported via pipeline to Tehran refinery and the equivalent of oil is exported to external markets. Monthly, near over half million barrels are fed to the refinery. Recently, the sixth batch of oil shipment from Caspian countries were swapped in Neka. According to the official, Iranian side plans to increase the capacity of Neka terminal from the present 350,000 barrels of swapped crude per day to 500,000. Dragon Oil, owned by Dubai-based Emirates National Oil Company, operating in Turkmen sector of the Caspian Sea, started oil supplies from Turkmenistan to Neka in August for swapping through the terminal Kharq in Persian Gulf. Iran is interested in steady increase of swap deals since it more convenient to provide refineries, located on the north of the country by crude, supplied from Caspian neighbors, rather than supplying it from southern fields. In turn, Caspian countries gain the opportunity to expand export market for its energy sources.
