TEHRAN, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- Iran has denied that the United Arab Emirates has overtaken it as the world's No. 3 oil exporter.
"As regards the subject of the quantity of Iranian crude oil in the world markets, it should be borne in mind that one part of this crude oil is made up of the country's independent exports, the foreign exchange earnings from which is paid into our state treasury," Hojjatollah Ghanimifard, director for international affairs of the National Iranian Oil Co., told the Iranian Students News Agency Sunday. "Another part of this oil is made up of the quantities of crude oil that enter the northern region of our country from several Caspian littoral states, as part of a swap deal.
"Therefore, the earnings generated from their sale go to the supplier, or the companies that have transported their crude oil from the Caspian littoral states (except Azerbaijan) to Neka (Mazandaran Province). But in return, no money is paid out to these companies, since the swap deal is based on exchanging equal amount of oil, in terms of both quantity and quality."
He added: "Therefore, when the subject of Iranian crude oil comes up, only the first part is taken into account. But, in practice, Iranian crude oil in the international market should be viewed in two parts, one part being the independent exports, and the other the quantities involved in the swap deals."
The comments to ISNA came after an Emirates news agency report that the United Arab Emirates had overtaken Iran and Norway to become the world's No. 3 oil exporter.
