Iran's energy sector review

OPEC members agreed to keep a 30mbpd crude oil output ceiling during the 152nd ministerial meeting on Wednesday. The 30mbpd quota was approved in December 2011, whilst the previous quota was 24.8mbpd, but neither last nor current quotas have been kept. For instance, during the Libya revolution, Saudi Arabia used its spare oil production capacity and the OPEC output increased to above 26mbpd (excepting Iraq), or during this summer 12 members increased oil output altogether to about 32mbpd, when the U.S and EU were preparing to put their oil sanctions on Iran into force. Iraq, which had suffered with long term sanctions during Saddam Hussein's presidency and experienced a war, has increased its oil crude production by one million barrels during the past three years. According to OPEC's latest monthly report published on Tuesday, Iraq's oil output reached 3.174mbpd, 509, 000 barrels above last year's output. Baghdad aims at a 3.7 million barrels oil production

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has run the executive branch of the country for seven and a half years and will be in the post for another six months. He has carried out large economic surgeries. Some believe that he has conducted surgeries without anesthetising the ailing economy by using force and threat, but some others say however, the economy was obliged to suffer the pain. The implementation of the subsidy reform plan and the liberalisation of the currency market have been realised mostly during the current year. After the Islamic Revolution's victory in 1979, the Iranian economy mostly experienced an inflation rate of above 10 per cent, but thanks to the injection of petrodollars into the economy, the devaluation of the rial against the dollar has not been at the same level with the inflation rate. During the past year, the rial lost 100 per cent of its value against dollar. In other words, due to intensified sanctions and the fall in Forex incomes, mainta