Defying US sanctions, Iranian oil exports to China triple since 2020

News Desk - The Cradle

US sanctions on Iran prohibit sovereign nations and private companies from making deals with the country's energy sector

Iranian oil exports to China have tripled over the past three years despite US sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic, according to statistics supplied by data analytics firm Kpler.

Crude oil shipments from the Islamic Republic to its biggest trade partner will equal about one million barrels each day (bpd) in 2023, up from around 325,000 bpd in 2020.

Oil trade between Iran and China has followed an upward trend since 2019. In 2021, exports reached 585,000 bpd; in 2022, the figure stood at 766,000 bpd.

The rise comes despite ever-tightening unilateral sanctions imposed by the US since their unilateral exit from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018 and the rampant smuggling of Iranian oil in the Persian Gulf.

The US withdrew from the Obama-era deal and reimposed a series of economic sanctions attempting to squeeze Iranian oil exports and curtail the country’s access to the international financial system, Foreign Affairs reported at the time. 

To evade these sanctions, most of Iran’s crude exports to China are rebranded as crude from other countries. This is done by forging documents to hide the origin of Iranian oil cargo.

In June, US news outlet Bloomberg confirmed that Iranian oil sales hit a five-year high, “fortifying its re-emergence on the geopolitical stage."

“[Iranian oil] exports have surged to the highest level since US sanctions were re-imposed in 2018, according to a range of analysts including Kpler Ltd., SVB Energy International, FGE, and the International Energy Agency,” Bloomberg reported.

To hinder Iran's booming energy sector, the US and the EU have continued to target individuals and companies with unilateral sanctions.

Last November, the US Treasury Department sanctioned 13 companies based in China, Hong Kong, and the UAE for “facilitating” the sale of Iranian petrochemicals and petroleum products to buyers in East Asia, including the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and Triliance Petrochemical Co. Ltd. – two companies already under sanctions.

Earlier this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged the west to lift sanctions on Iran and to expedite the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).