Iran to start exporting oil from new port that bypasses Strait of Hormuz

RIYADH (Arabnews): Iran said it will soon export oil from a new port that allows it to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, as nuclear talks between Tehran and other world powers show signs of progress, Bloomberg reported.

State-controlled National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) will start shipping crude from the Jask terminal on the Gulf of Oman coast next month, according to a statement.

NIOC is already pumping oil into a 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) pipeline connecting Jask with the southwestern energy hub of Goreh, Managing Director Masoud Karbasian said.

The pipeline will be officially opened by President Hassan Rouhani in the near future, Karbasian said, without giving a timeframe or stating how much oil will initially be exported.

Iran is under strict US sanctions that effectively bar it from selling oil. Most of its energy exports currently have to be sent through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow channel and a shipping flashpoint in recent years.

World powers are trying to broker an agreement between Iran and the US to revive a 2015 nuclear accord, which restricted Tehran’s atomic activities in return for sanctions relief.

Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister and chief negotiator in Vienna, where talks are being held, said on Wednesday there had been “good progress.”