Skip to navigationSkip to main contentSkip to right columnADVERTISEMENTTsvetana ParaskovaFri, July 3, 2026 at 12:00 AM GMT+2 5 min readIran is wasting no time in returning full steam to the oil export market after the Islamic Republic and the United States agreed in mid-June on a 60-day window to negotiate a deal.Since the memorandum of understanding was signed and the U.S. blockade aimed at preventing Iranian oil exports was lifted, Tehran has exported millions of barrels of its oil and has probably raised more revenues from these sales as the discounts of the Iranian crude to benchmarks have narrowed.In the memorandum of understanding, Iran won several key concessions for the 60-day negotiations period. Not only was the U.S. blockade in the Gulf of Oman lifted – in exchange for Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz – but the U.S. sanctions on Iran's oil sales were temporarily waived until August 21.Iran Rushes to Ship Oil While It CanIran was prepared for a surge in shipments as soon as the U.S. lifted the blockade. Three days after the memorandum was signed, at least three supertankers, carrying a total of 6 million barrels of Iranian crude, moved to transit the Strait of Hormuz, in open AIS navigation showing Singaporean waters as a destination, vessel-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg showed.On June 20, the volumes of Iranian crude transiting the Strait of Hormuz were the most Iranian oil openly making its way out of the key Iranian oil port at Kharg Island and into the Strait of Hormuz in a day since the war began on February 28, according to Bloomberg's estimates.The surge in Iranian shipments out of the Gulf and into waters near the Malacca and Singapore Straits gives Iran a lifeline to boost its exports that had suffered from the U.S. blockade in the past two months.Related: Kuwait Wants Consortiums to Bid for $7 Billion Oil Pipeline Deal"Iranian-origin laden departures rose only 16% post-MoU because Iran was already the single largest origin during the blockade period, and a significant number of barrels were already positioned at Chabhahar (outside Hormuz) ready to move when the US blockade was lifted," Claire Jungman, Director of Maritime Risk and Intelligence at Vortexa, said last week.Iranian cargo movements had soared through March and early April, before the U.S. blockaded shipments, with peaks near 7 million barrels per day (bpd) on some days, according to Vortexa's crude cargo tracking. Iran's shipments then collapsed through May as the U.S. tightened the blockade outside the Strait of Hormuz.But after the MoU was signed on June 17, Iran's crude volumes rebounded sharply, reaching a single-day peak of around 8 million bpd, Vortexa's Jungman noted.Terms and Privacy PolicyEU DSA contactPrivacy & Cookie SettingsMore Info