The Post added, “Threatened by tougher international and U.S. penalties that target the financing of oil projects and technical support for Iran's energy sector, Western firms such as Shell, Total and Halliburton have pulled out of the development of the South Pars gas field. In addition to problems obtaining financing, the companies face difficulties in procuring key instruments and hiring drilling rigs, industry insiders said.”
The Washington Post compared the level of development and production of Iran’s natural gas resources to Qatar, saying, Qatar “exported $62 billion of mainly gas products in 2008, while Iran's gas exports brought in about $6 billion.”
The Wall Street Journal also published a report on Friday about the stopping of a gasoline tanker on route to Iran in Turkey, saying the move might seem small but it is significant for isolating the Iranian regime.
According to the WSJ report, the owner of the tanker refused to allow the vessel to sail to Iran since he was worried about dealing with the Iranian regime.
The Journal added that such measures, in view of the domestic uprising, have taken political dimensions, taking the regime’s challenges resulting from sanctions beyond the its capacity.