Imam Khomeini Port in the southern Khuzestan Province handled 40 million tons of goods during the first 11 months of the current Iranian year (March 21, 2022-Feb. 19).
This included 14 million tons of essential goods, 5 million tons of minerals and construction materials, 1.7 million tons of oil products, and 15.7 million tons of petrochemical products, according to a local official.
“The containerized shipping volume stood at 112,000 TEU [twenty-foot equivalent unit] during the period,” Davoud Chegeni was also quoted as saying by the news portal of the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development.
Imam Khomeini is the main port of entry for essential goods in Iran.
Also known as necessity or basic goods, essential goods refer to products consumers will buy, regardless of changes in income levels.
The lion’s share of the country’s demand for livestock feed raw material and grains is imported through this southern port.
Overall, Imam Khomeini is Iran’s second busiest port after Shahid Rajaee Port in Hormozgan Province. It boasts 40 wharfs, 140 kilometers of railroads within its premises and the latest loading and unloading facilities.
Last year, Imam Khomeini Port with 12.59 million tons topped the list of ports through which essential goods were imported. These goods included 7.71 million tons of corn, 2.95 million tons of wheat, 1.32 million tons of barley and 607,021 tons of sugar.
However, dozens of merchant ships with grains and sugar remained stuck outside the port, as payment snags disrupt flows of goods into the country, Reuters reported recently, citing trade sources and shipping data.
Food is exempt from the West's sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, but the impact of sanctions on Iran's financial system has created complex and erratic payment arrangements with international companies.
The latest payment issues prevented ships from discharging cargoes, with at least 40 bulk carrier ships stuck outside the major Iranian ports of Imam Khomeini Port and Bandar Abbas, ship tracking data on Refinitiv showed.
Iran's Ports and Maritime Organization said in a report in November that some 37 ships loaded with 2.2 million tons of goods had not been able to unload due to "documentation and hard currency payment issues" at Imam Khomeini Port.
Food security is a priority for Iran and the need for imports has increased because of a drought that has hit domestic food production for two seasons in a row.
Iran is expected to import 5.5 million tons of wheat in the 2022-23 season (July/June), down from 8 million tons in the prior season but still well above normal levels, based on US Department of Agriculture data.
In the previous five seasons, imports had averaged just 1.1 million tons, the data showed.
One Western trade source familiar with the matter estimated that the cargoes stuck outside Iran's port are worth more than $1 billion with charterers of the cargoes also facing delay costs known as demurrage.
Broker Paragon Global Markets (PGM) said it was not clear how many of the vessels might have sugar cargoes onboard.
"That is potentially bearish if a large buyer can’t find money, then that could leave a large quantity of sugar trying to find a home," PGM said in a note.
Iran's sugar imports are expected to total 1.1 million tons in the 2022-23 season (October/September), slightly down from 1.3 million tons in the prior season, according to the International Sugar Organization.
