NIOC in Talks With Vitol

EghtesadOnline: Iran is seeking to extend or renew a $1 billion oil deal with the Swiss giant Vitol Group ahead of the promised return in November of crippling US sanctions, media reported.

News ID: ۷۴۵۹۵۷

02 September 2018

The National Iranian Oil Company is now in talks with Vitol to rescue their 2016 deal, in which the trader agreed to pre-finance the equivalent of $1 billion in exchange for future oil deliveries, Sputnik reported. The Wall Street Journal has also cited another informed source as saying that the Swiss energy company was likely to scrap the agreement. A spokeswoman for the group told the paper it complied with all international sanctions.

The US threat to go after foreign businesses in Iran has been harshly criticized in Europe. The European Union introduced a blocking statute to shield EU companies from the impact of US restrictions. Switzerland is not an EU member.

The US administration in May withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and reimposed the first phase of sanctions on the Islamic Republic, according to Financial Tribune.