Iran's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, and the chief executive of the state-run National Iranian Oil Company, Hamid Bovard, will lead the ministry on an acting basis, Iranian state media reported on Sunday.
President Masoud Pezeshkian accepted Paknejad's resignation, an official at the president's office said. Bovard will take charge of the ministry until parliament approves a new minister.
No reason given
State media provided no reason for the abrupt departure. Paknejad, the oil minister of the OPEC member country, had held the post since August 2024, steering Iran's massive oil and gas industry through a seven-month war with the United States that has put severe pressure on the country's economy.
Shortly before news of the resignation broke, Paknejad insisted that state energy revenues remained intact. "Revenues of the oil that we have sold are still coming and that will continue God willing," he was quoted as saying by state media.
A critical portfolio in wartime
The oil ministry is one of the most consequential portfolios in Tehran, controlling the revenues that fund the state. Paknejad led the sector through two rounds of US and Israeli strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure and oversaw the repair of petrochemical plants damaged in Israeli aerial attacks, according to Iranian media reports.
The change at the top of the energy ministry comes as the war continues to strain Iran's economy and as the conflict's impact on regional energy supply keeps global oil markets on edge.
Sources:
Reuters: Iran's oil minister resigns, state media says
Arab News: Iran's oil minister resigns, no reason given
President Masoud Pezeshkian accepted Paknejad's resignation, an official at the president's office said. Bovard will take charge of the ministry until parliament approves a new minister.
No reason given
State media provided no reason for the abrupt departure. Paknejad, the oil minister of the OPEC member country, had held the post since August 2024, steering Iran's massive oil and gas industry through a seven-month war with the United States that has put severe pressure on the country's economy.
Shortly before news of the resignation broke, Paknejad insisted that state energy revenues remained intact. "Revenues of the oil that we have sold are still coming and that will continue God willing," he was quoted as saying by state media.
A critical portfolio in wartime
The oil ministry is one of the most consequential portfolios in Tehran, controlling the revenues that fund the state. Paknejad led the sector through two rounds of US and Israeli strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure and oversaw the repair of petrochemical plants damaged in Israeli aerial attacks, according to Iranian media reports.
The change at the top of the energy ministry comes as the war continues to strain Iran's economy and as the conflict's impact on regional energy supply keeps global oil markets on edge.
Sources:
Reuters: Iran's oil minister resigns, state media says
Arab News: Iran's oil minister resigns, no reason given
