Iran Maintains Oil Exports Amid US Missile Strikes
Iran's Petroleum Minister claims crude exports continued uninterrupted during a 40-day conflict despite US naval blockades and recent missile strikes on a tanker near Kharg Island.
Iranian state media reported that U.S. forces struck an oil tanker with four missiles on Saturday near Kharg Island, a primary hub for crude exports. While the crew was evacuated without casualties, the United States Central Command has not confirmed the attack. This incident follows a period of intensified fighting and threats from Donald Trump to strike Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected nuclear site.
Petroleum Minister Mohsen Paknejad recently announced that Iran maintained crude oil exports without interruption during a 40-day conflict that began on February 28. To bypass a U.S. naval blockade that spanned from Ras al-Hadd to Gwadar port between April and June, Iran shifted oil sales and deliveries thousands of kilometers away from the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. A second blockade imposed on July 15 remains in effect.
The conflict has seen joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on oil storage and distribution facilities, including an attack on March 18 that hit four gas refineries in Asaluyeh. Despite these strikes and a U.S. attack on a wedding party in Kuhestak, the Petroleum Ministry is now implementing a program to increase crude production by 250,000 barrels per day and has increased total flare-gas collection to 17 million cubic meters per day.
