[THE INVESTOR] Imports of Iranian crude oil to Korea more than doubled on-year in the second quarter this year, as international sanctions against the Middle Eastern country were lifted, government data showed Aug. 17.

A total of 25.35 million barrels of crude oil was imported from Iran during the April-June period, soaring 123.3 percent from 11.35 million barrels tallied over the same period last year, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Iran had been one of the biggest crude oil exporters to South Korea, which imports nearly all of its oil, until the international community imposed economic sanctions on it over its nuclear weapons program in 2012.

As Washington and Tehran reached a landmark nuclear deal in January, South Korea sought to expand imports of Iranian oil, which is cheaper than that of other oil-rich countries.

With the sharp increase in Iranian crude, South Korea’s overall oil imports increased 4.5 percent on-year to 266.38 million barrels during the three-month period.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)