SA ups oil from Iran despite US pressure

JOHANNESBURG – South African crude oil imports from Iran rose to 3,37 billion rand (US$434,8 million) in March from 2,8 billion the previous month, customs data showed on Monday, indicating Pretoria had not bowed to US pressure to curb commercial links with Tehran.

The Revenue Service said Africa’s biggest economy imported 505 908 tons of Iranian crude in March, up from 417 188 tons the previous month.South Africa has come under Western pressure to cut Iranian crude imports as part of sanctions designed to halt Tehran’s suspected pursuit of nuclear weapons, but the response from diplomatically non-aligned Pretoria has been unclear.South Africa could take an economic hit if it does not comply. Its Iranian crude imports declined between October and January, when they reached zero, but they began rising again in February.Neither the foreign ministry nor the department of energy were willing to comment.It is also not clear who bought the crude after almost all South African refiners said in recent months that they had already found alternative suppliers.Senior energy and foreign ministry officials contradicted each other in March as to the status of Iranian imports. Until late last year, Iran was typically South Africa’s biggest crude supplier, accounting for a quarter of its oil imports.According to the March data, crude imports totalled 1,6 million tons, with Nigeria supplying 38 per cent, Iran 32 per cent, Saudi Arabia 22 per cent and Angola the rest.The biggest South African buyer of Iranian crude used to be Engen, which is majority-owned by Malaysian state oil group Petronas, but the group said in April it had halted all imports of Iranian oil.Petrochemicals group Sasol, which took 12 000 barrels of Iranian oil a day, also said it had found new suppliers but has not named them.Other refiners in South Africa include BP, Shell , Total and Chevron. BP and Chevron said in February they were not sourcing any Iranian crude.Some South African refineries are designed to treat Iranian-type crude only, and refiners would be hard-pressed to replace those supplies with other products.Any disruption in crude imports could hit fuel supplies in South Africa, which have already been volatile because of strikes and refinery problems. – Nampa-Reuters

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