China, India to buy Iran oil regardless of US sanctions
August 13, 2018 - China said on Monday it would continue to import Iran’s crude as it has long been doing, despite the US unilateral sanctions on the Islamic Republic of Iran.
“Chinese companies need Iranian oil in any circumstances and will continue to buy it,” the head of the international office of China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation (CPCIF) Andrey Yu told IRNA.
Andrey said China doesn’t pay attention to the US sanctions on Iran. “It is a routine between Iran and China and has nothing to do with the US. Oil, gas and trade shouldn’t be influenced by the US anymore.”
He said that Chinese and Russian companies can replace French oil giant Total and other European energy firms in Iran after they announced plans to leave the country in fear of US sanctions.
“It is highly improbable that Iran would have a problem in drilling and investment in its oil industry,” said Andrey, adding that “Iran has been able to keep progressing in the past decades despite the sanctions.”
Pointing that Iran and China can have closer ties, Andrey said the US cannot harm relations between Iran and China via sanctions.
Meanwhile, Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the country’s largest oil company, said on Monday that its plans to expand the Chennai refinery are not likely to be threatened by the impending US sanctions against Iran.
IOC wants to continue buying oil from Iran due to better terms and is also interested in getting into a long-term deal to buy US oil, Chairman Sanjiv Singh said, according to Reuters.
The US restored sanctions on Iran on Monday after leaving the 2015 nuclear deal. The first wave of sanctions targeted Iranian exports, the country's financial system and its ability to access the global financial system.
US sanctions on Iran’s energy sector are to be reimposed after a 180-day wind-down period ending on November 4.