OPEC to welcome Iran’s return to oil market

OPEC will welcome Iran’s full return to the oil market when sanctions are lifted, the secretary general of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) told the Iranian oil ministry's website SHANA on Monday.

Iran is an OPEC member, although its oil exports are subject to US sanctions aimed at curbing Tehran's nuclear program.

Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais, who is visiting Tehran for the first time, added that Iran has the capacity to bring on significant production volumes within a short period of time.

"We believe that Iran is a responsible player amongst its family members, the countries in the OPEC group. I’m sure there will be good work together, in synchronization, to ensure that the market will remain balanced as OPEC has continued to do over the past many years," SHANA's English-language website cited him as saying.

Asked about OPEC’s voluntary production cut and its effect on oil prices, Ghais said, "In OPEC...we don’t target a certain price level. All our actions, all our decisions are made in order to have a good balance between global oil demand and global oil supply."

In a surprise move in early April, Saudi Arabia and other members of OPEC Plus, which comprises OPEC and allies including Russia, announced further oil output cuts of around 1.2 million barrels per day, bringing the total volume of cuts by OPEC Plus to 3.66 million barrels per day, according to Reuters calculations.

Saudi Arabia, the kingpin of OPEC, and Iran announced in March that they would restore diplomatic relations after years of hostility, in a deal brokered by China, the world's second largest oil consumer.

Turkey: Erdogan wins another term as President

Chairman of Turkey's Supreme Election Council (YSK) announced that the incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been re-elected as the country's leader.

Yener said that Erdogan won Turkey's presidency over opposition challenger Kemal Kilicdaroglu in the second-round runoff vote.

He pointed out that Erdogan won the race with 52.14%, while Kilicdaroglu got 47.86% of the votes after counting 99.43% of the votes.

In a speech in Istanbul late Sunday, President Erdogan said Turkey’s 85 million-strong citizens are the winners in the national elections that concluded today.

More than 64.1 million people were registered to vote, including over 1.92 million who earlier cast their ballots at overseas polling stations.

Nearly 192,000 ballot boxes were set up for voters across Turkey.

On May 14, no candidate won the required 50% in the first round, triggering Sunday’s runoff, although Erdogan took the lead with 49.52%.​​​​​​

On that day, Erdogan’s People’s Alliance also won a majority in parliament.

 

 

Israeli President’s visit to Azerbaijan

President Isaac Herzog will travel to Azerbaijan on Tuesday to strengthen the strategic ties between Israel and the Shia Muslim country bordering on Iran.

During the two-day visit, Herzog plans to meet with his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev and to take part in a special event marking the 75th anniversary of Israeli independence.

Aliyev will welcome Herzog and his wife, Michal, at his palace, with an honor guard, and the two presidents plan to hold a diplomatic meeting, followed by a lunch.

Health and Interior Minister Moshe Arbel will accompany Herzog to Azerbaijan, where he plans to meet with his counterparts in Baku to discuss greater cooperation in training doctors, emergency preparedness and digital health.

Israel and Azerbaijan are expected to sign an agreement on health cooperation during the visit.

The Herzogs will also meet with members of the Jewish community in Azerbaijan. They are expected to be met at the airport by 30 children who attend the Chabad School in Baku, waving the flags of Israel and Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan opened an embassy in Israel for the first time in March of this year, though Israel has had an embassy in Baku since 1993.

Baku had been hesitant to open an embassy in Israel in the past for fear of alienating other Muslim-majority states or provoking Iran but saw the Abraham Accords and Israel's rapprochement with Turkey, in which Aliyev played a part, as turning points.

Israel and Azerbaijan have a close defense relationship. Jerusalem supplied drones to Baku that were used in its 2020 war with Armenia, according to foreign reports.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute found that 69% of Azerbaijan’s arms imports in 2016-2020 came from Israel, which represents 17% of Israel’s arms exports in that period.

About 40% of the petroleum imported to Israel comes from Azerbaijan.

Azeri politicians tied the move to open an embassy in Israel to Iran opening an additional consulate and declaring close ties with Armenia, with which Azerbaijan fought a war in 2020.

Iran and Azerbaijan share a 670-kilometer border, and there has long been speculation that Israel has launched covert operations in Iran from its northern neighbor.

Last year, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian accused Israel of having established its presence in several regions of Azerbaijan, which Baku denied.

Soon after, Iran staged a military drill along the border. Aliyev responded by having himself photographed with Israeli Harop kamikaze drones, which are produced in his country.

Also this week, Foreign Minister Eli Cohen will be making a diplomatic trip to Central Europe to meet with senior government figures in Croatia, Slovakia, Hungary, and Austria. He plans to visit four countries and meet with five foreign ministers in four days.

He will be the first Israeli foreign minister to visit Slovakia and the first in 10 years to go to Zagreb.

“The diplomatic visit to Central Europe strengthens our strategic coordination with our allies and creates opportunities for Israel to promote its diplomatic and economic interests on the continent,” Cohen said. “Israel’s allies in the EU play an important role…from economic, cultural and technological cooperation, to our joint fight against terror and a nuclear Iran.”

 

Iranian team visits location of deadly attack

A parliamentary delegation from the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Iran visited the location of the deadly armed attack that took place earlier this month on the border with Pakistan. Shahriar Heidari, a member of the Committee, led the delegation.

Last week, five Iranian border guards were killed during an attack by gunmen in the border region of Mak Soukhteh in Sistan-Baluchistan province. Two of the victims are officers and the remaining three are conscripts.

The troops serving in the border regiment of Saravan clashed with a group of gunmen who were trying to cross the border near the Mazesar border post, the Iranian police said, adding that the terrorists fled the scene after sustaining heavy losses, according to Tasnim.

The attack took place in Saravan, which is only 40 kilometers away from the border with Pakistan. Earlier, the deputy commander of the Iranian police and the commander of the Iranian border guards traveled to the location of the clash.

Heidari said the Iranian troops resisted from their location at the border post’s turret for an hour. “Five people of the border guards were stationed in the turret that was destroyed by the group for about an hour. The terrorists first asked the Iranian border guards to surrender, but the brave border guards of our country preferred martyrdom to surrender. And this shows the sacrifice, interest and courage of the border guards towards the soil of the country,” he said, according to the parliamentary news agency ICANA. 

He also said that the assailants were backed by foreign powers. “Based on the geographical conditions of this region, it is quite clear that the foreign services on the other side of the border had a close relationship with the terrorist group and definitely helped them in providing equipment,” he added. 

He continued, “The authorities should pay special attention to equipping the country's border guards, and I expect my colleagues in the parliament to soon put the plan to strengthen the border guards on the agenda so that the border guards of the Islamic Republic of Iran can be strengthened in terms of quality and quantity.”

Heidari said, “In the course of the clash, with the planning of the border guard commander and the border regiment and readiness, the turrets around the border guard helped as soon as possible. The border guards targeted the enemy's location in different places; some of the bad guys were injured in this conflict.”

He also called on Pakistan to ensure border security. “The expectation of the Islamic Republic of Iran from Pakistan is that this country also pays attention to the security of the border and this issue is very important for Iran. The foreign ministers of Iran and Pakistan should monitor these issues and Pakistan should take measures to ensure the security of the common borders so that we do not witness the repetition of such unfortunate events.”

Heidari noted, “The two countries of Iran and Pakistan have concerns about their common borders, but today only the Islamic Republic of Iran has been active and has taken measures to ensure the security of these borders.”

The lawmaker said Iran is also ready to conduct operations inside Pakistan to ensure security if Islamabad is unable to do so. He said such an operation can be done with Pakistan’s approval. 

“Pakistan must respect the right of neighbor, because the border tensions that occur under the influence of some currents and with the help of the equipment of foreigners harm the relations between Iran and Pakistan,” he continued.

 

Rising concerns about bunker quality

Singapore-based marine fuel supply firm, Integr8 Fuels, has warned ship operators of potential bunker quality issues. In its second Bunker Quality Trends report, the firm has assessed data relating to the supply of 60 million tons of bunker fuel over six months.

Integr8’s most important finding is that ships refuelling in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp port range are no less than 14 times more likely to receive very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) consignments with sulphur levels exceeding the mandated 0.5% maximum than ships bunkering in Singapore.

The findings come at a key moment. They follow a series of high-profile incidents in Singapore, the world’s largest bunkering port, in which around 200 ships were affected by bad bunkers in the early months of 2022. Problems included clogged pipes, blocked fuel filters, and obstructed centrifuges.   

They also precede the 2025 introduction of the next Emission Control Area (ECA) in the strategically important Mediterranean Sea, affecting many thousands of vessels. From the beginning of May 2025, ships operating across the entire ECA will have to burn fuel with a sulphur content of no more than 0.1%.  

The Integr8 report provides owners with an update on fuel quality across a range of bunkering ports. In a statement, the company said it has addressed questions such as how likely an owner may be to face off-spec bunker situations; what parameters are the most problematic; and which ports pose the greatest risks.

The company’s Bunker Quality and Claims Manager, Chris Turner commented, “Whilst fuel quality remains good overall, pockets of problems remain, and data-driven buying remains the first line of defence to proactively protect buyers against most of the issues we see in the industry. We hope this report will provide ship operators and bunker buyers with the information and tools they need to mitigate risk and make smart buying decisions.”

The increasingly complex marketplace has prompted Integr8 to provide more data for clients. A new website will provide users with data sets that should give a basis for bunkering decisions such as when, where, costs, and avoiding possible delays.

Pablo Di Nieri, CCO said, “With so many different sources of data, and, in the case of pricing, a lack of official benchmarking system, it can be difficult to determine the right buying strategy or confidently assess performance. That’s why we have teams of research analysts and technical experts monitoring the market and producing valuable resources which users can access via our new website, along with regularly updated bunker pricing and quality information.”

 

Iran stresses unity among OPEC members

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi stressed the necessity of strengthening unity among the members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to nullify the division created by the West.

Making the remarks during a meeting with OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais, in Tehran on Saturday, in the presence of Oil Minister Javad Oji, the president said, “Some Western countries seek to create division and disagreements among OPEC member countries to secure their interests, and the OPEC members should prevent the realization of these goals by strengthening their cohesion.”

He considered the constructive cooperation of the OPEC members with each other as an important factor in the success of this international organization and added: “The Islamic Republic of Iran has always had a constructive cooperation with this organization and we are determined to continue and improve the level of cooperation.”

The president further mentioned supporting the rights of oil producers and preventing discrimination against them as the philosophy of forming OPEC, and expressed hope that OPEC can bring peace to the oil market in the new period of activity.

During the meeting with the Iranian president and oil minister, OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais stated that the Islamic Republic of Iran, as one of the founding members of OPEC, has always had useful, effective, and constructive cooperation with this organization and its members and reminded, “Iran, both at the ministerial level and at the technical level has always acted in the direction of strengthening the cohesion and unity of OPEC members.”

Describing the situation of the oil market he said, “I hope that with the unity of OPEC members and benefiting from the constructive support and cooperation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, we will be able to bring peace to the market.”

The OPEC secretary general arrived in Tehran on Friday for reviewing the oil market situation, as well as the supply and demand outlook, with the Iranian officials, and exchange of views on the upcoming meeting of OPEC members and the ministerial meeting of the OPEC Plus (an entity consisting of the 13 OPEC members and 10 of the world's major non-OPEC oil-exporting countries).

Iran has always asked fellow OPEC members to refrain from any unilateral measures, warning that would undermine the unity of OPEC.

The Islamic Republic has called on members not to take unilateral measures that would undermine the unity and independence of OPEC and provoke the US to take action against Iran.

Reacting to Iran’s approach in this regard, the former OPEC secretary general said there were no unilateral decisions in the organization.

Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo said, “Regarding the issue of Iran and the sanctions, Iran had been faced with similar challenges in recent years and I am sure that it can overcome these issues.”

“Over the 60 years since the establishment of OPEC, we have faced many challenges, but what has always helped us is the unity of member stations. If we can preserve this unity, we can overcome the problems again,” the ex-OPEC secretary general said in an interview in Tehran on the sidelines of the Iran Oil Show.

Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji has stressed that the global energy market needs an increase in the supply of Iranian oil saying, “As a major producer of oil and petroleum products, we are always ready to play our role in maintaining global energy security away from politics.”

Speaking after an OPEC Plus meeting last September, Oji noted that the role and importance of Iran's supply of energy resources, including oil, gas, and petroleum products, is of double importance in ensuring the stability and security of the world's energy.

“We have always declared that Iran is ready to contribute to the improvement of energy security in the world by avoiding the political use of energy. The global energy market needs an increase in the supply of oil and natural gas from Iran,” the minister said.

 

Iraq launches road and rail project to link Asia and Europe

Iraq has launched a US$17 billion project on Saturday to link a major commodities port on its southern coast by rail and roads to the border with Turkey, in a move designed to transform the country's economy after decades of war and crisis.

The Development Road aims to tie the Grand Faw Port in Iraq's oil-rich south to Turkey, turning the country into a transit hub by shortening travel time between Asia and Europe in a bid to rival the Suez Canal.

"The Development Road is not just a road to move goods or passengers. This road opens the door to development of vast areas of Iraq," Farhan al-Fartousi, director general of the General Company for Ports of Iraq, told Reuters.

Iraq's government envisions high-speed trains moving goods and passengers at up to 300 kilometres (186.41 miles) per hour, links to local industry hubs and an energy component that could include oil and gas pipelines.

It would mark a significant departure from the country's existing aged transport network.

Iraq's train service currently operates a handful of lines, including slow oil freight and a single overnight passenger train that trundles from Baghdad to Basra, taking 10 to 12 hours to cover 500 kilometres.

The Grand Faw Port, which was devised over a decade ago, is halfway to completion, Fartousi said.

Passenger transport between Iraq and Europe harkens back to grand plans at the turn of the 20th century to create a Baghdad to Berlin express.

"We will make this line active again and tie it to other countries," Fartousi said, noting plans to ferry tourists and pilgrims to Shiite holy sites in Iraq and Mecca in Saudi Arabia for the Haj pilgrimage.

The project was announced on Saturday at a conference aimed at courting Arab interest, including from Arab Gulf states, Syria and Jordan. A senior government aide said regional investment was on the table.

Promises of development are long-standing in Iraq but infrastructure remains decrepit even as the government of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani makes a push to rebuild roads and bridges.

But officials say the Development Road is based on something new: a period of relative stability since late last year that they hope can be maintained.

If work starts early next year, the project would be completed in 2029, Fartousi said.

"Even if Iraq was absent for a year or two or a decade or two, it must return one day or another. Hopefully these days are the beginning of the return of Iraq," he said.