VOL XL

No. 03

20-January-1997

IRAN

Iran-Kazakh Oil Swap Gets Under Way

After some months of delay, the crude oil exchange dealbetween Iran and Kazakhstan, which was signed last May (MEES, 20 May and 3 June1996), has now reached the stage of physical start-up. Four crude cargoes of 4,000 tonseach have already been shipped from Kazakhstan's Caspian Sea port of Aktau for delivery tothe Iranian port of Neka, and a fifth was loading at MEES press time on Friday.This intricate swap was not an easy...