New long-term buyers in talks for Iranian crude

TEHRAN,Feb.25(MNA)--A number of countries are in negotiations with Iran to buy crude on long-term agreements, after the Islamic Republic last week set conditions of longer contracts on several companies and countries. The National Iranian Oil Company’s (NIOC) Managing Director Ahmad Qalebani revealed the negotiations to Shana news agency. France's Total and the UK's Shell and BP will be banned from forwarding Iranian oil to French or British refiners and will need to sign up to new 2 to 5 year contracts, Qalebani said. Iranian Oil Ministry spokesperson Ali Reza Nikzad-Rahbar announced on Sunday that crude exports to British and French companies have been stopped. France and Britain were the main architects of the European Union’s oil embargo against Iran. The Iranian parliament has prepared a plan calling for a halt to Iran’s oil exports to the European Union states that voted for sanctions on the country’s oil industry. The NIOC has predicted that international spot price for oil will jump to $150 per barrel due to Iran’s plan to suspend exports to some European states.