dbergh, . During covid oil consumption dropped so it's no wonder volume and value of Iran exports of it have increased dramatically. There are many more details we should all be aware of, but there are two specifics you really should be aware of. Biden is enforcing Trump's sanctions and Iran does not have easy access to all the money coming from the export of their crude:
The Obama administration lifted both oil sanctions as part of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, but the Trump administration reinstated them in 2018.
The Biden administration is enforcing these sanctions, though they are not working as well as in the past. Both rely on the threat of secondary sanctions to change the behavior of participants in Iran’s oil trade, especially refineries and banks. As small-scale independent Chinese refineries, known as “teapots,” now purchase most of Iran’s oil exports, the threat of secondary sanctions has become less potent because these refineries have minimal ties to the US economy. Chinese banks, by contrast, remain wary of US sanctions, so Iran still does not enjoy unfettered access to its oil revenues, which continue to accrue in bank accounts in China.
The Biden administration could impose secondary sanctions on some of the teapots, but it is not clear that doing so would decrease China’s oil imports from Iran. The biggest obstacle to effective sanctions is the fact that China is now the only major buyer of Iranian oil, whereas in 2012 there were more than a dozen countries buying Iranian oil.[9] Decreasing Iran’s oil exports would require a substantial shift in China’s energy relationship with Iran—and that is unlikely to happen unless Beijing is on board.
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