Iran oil minister steps down amid U.S. sanctions pressure

Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, citing personal reasons, as the country grapples with severe restrictions on its oil industry due to U.S. pressure. President Masoud Pezeshkian accepted Paknejad’s resignation on Sunday, after previously rejecting his requests to step down, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.

The president appointed Hamid Bovard, Deputy Oil Minister and Managing Director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), as the interim minister. Bovard, who previously led several NIOC subsidiaries, now faces the challenge of an oil sector under intense U.S. sanctions aimed at curbing Iran’s exports.

The U.S. naval blockade in the Persian Gulf has halted Iran’s oil exports, a critical revenue source, forcing the country to cut production. Iran is also dealing with shortages of gasoline and natural gas, worsened by the ongoing conflict with Washington. The situation has led to increased scrutiny of intermediaries helping Iran bypass sanctions, with judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i criticizing the system for failing to repatriate proceeds from crude oil sales.