The Islamic Republic’s Petroleum Ministry said it had signed a package of contracts with its traditional crude buyers – China, India, South Korea, Turkey and Japan – for the delivery of Iranian oil this year.
"The return of such a big player to the global energy market will clearly have implications on the global oil and gas market. It fits very well with the diversification strategy of the European Union and the energy union," European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic said Wednesday.
The European Commission expects the Iranian oil import embargo to be lifted no earlier than at the end of 2015 following a historic deal to guarantee a peaceful nuclear development program in exchange for sanctions relief, Sefcovic said.
The European Union imposed an embargo on Iranian oil imports in mid-2012, cutting the Islamic Republic’s oil revenues by half.
"I think the best bet is we might come back to these very concrete questions you proposed at the end of the year or the beginning of next year."
