MOSCOW (MRC) -- OPEC has managed to raise crude prices and stabilize the oil market, OPEC member Iran’s oil minister was quoted as saying by his ministry’s website SHANA, as per Reuters.
“OPEC’s performance has been successful because the price of oil has risen from $16 in May to around $45 and has stabilized,” Bijan Zanganeh said.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies including Russia, a group known as OPEC+, agreed record output cuts to tackle the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. Zanganeh said Iran’s oil industry has signed 13 contracts worth roughly 1.5 billion euros with 14 local firms to enhance and maintain the country’s oil production.
In 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with six powers and reimposed sanctions that have sharply cut Iran’s oil exports.
“We welcome the participation of all foreign companies in the development of oil industry projects except companies from Israel, but we will continue our work even without their participation in our projects,” Zanganeh said.
Fearing U.S. penalties, foreign companies have stayed away from investing in Iran. Tehran does not recognise Israel.
As MRC reported earlier, in late April, 2020, the first phase of Connell Chemical Industry Ltd.'s 600 KTA MTO complex, a 300 KTA MTO plant, successfully started up and produced on-spec ethylene and propylene. This project is the first large-size chemical project brought online during period when Chinais in the process of restarting the economy while fighting COVID-19 pandemic. The MTO plant started feed-in at 8:18 AM on April 15, produced on-spec propylene at 7:00 AM on April 18, and produced on-spec ethylene at 4:00 AM on April 20.
Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).
According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.