By Teddy Nwanunobi
The Islamic Republic of Iran has expressed its readiness to increase its production as soon as sanctions are lifted.
This was disclosed on Friday by the outgoing Petroleum Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Bijan Zanganeh, to the Secretary General of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, when the former hosted the latter to a working lunch.
Zanganeh played host to Barkindo, ahead of Barkindo’s first meeting with the newly sworn-in President Sayyad Ebrahim Raisi.
Valuechain reports that Raisi was sworn-in as the 8th President of IR Iran on Thursday, August 5, having won more than 17 million 926 thousand votes (62 per cent of the votes), defeating his three other rivals by a large margin, in the elections held nationwide.
During the meeting, Barkindo and Zanganeh discussed global oil market developments, as well as the role of the Declaration of Cooperation (DoC) in supporting the rebalancing of the global oil market.
Zanganeh also lauded the efforts of the Secretary General and reiterated his support for these.
The Secretary General thanked Zanganeh for his many years of service to OPEC and the global oil industry, noting that the legacy of the Minister is set to remain a source of inspiration for decades to come.
Barkindo also thanked the Minister for the leading role he has played in the success of OPEC, as well as in unifying OPEC and non-OPEC oil producing countries of the DoC to reach consensus in the interests of oil market stability.
Zanganeh is also an architect of the Charter of Cooperation (CoC) endorsed in July 2019.
“Minister, your asserted diplomacy and exemplary leadership, as well as your deep technical knowledge, have always prevailed during discussion and consultations among OPEC member countries and among the DoC’s 23 participants to help pave the way forward. We, at OPEC, will take stock for the future from the unparalleled, rich legacy that you left for us,” he said.
Zanganeh is the longest-serving Head of Delegation to OPEC, having served as IR Iran’s Minister of Energy from 1988 to 1997.
He was also the Minister of Petroleum for two periods: from 1997 to 2005, and from 2013 to present.
The lunch was also attended by Amir Hossein Zamaninia, the outgoing Deputy Petroleum Minister for Trade and International Affairs, Governor for OPEC, and Chairman of OPEC’s Board of Governors.
