Iran's oil minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, and President Masoud Pezeshkian has named National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) chief Hamid Bovard as acting petroleum minister, Iranian state media announced on Sunday, October 4, 2026. The shakeup at the top of OPEC member Iran's oil ministry comes as a seven-month war with the United States squeezes the country's energy economy.
Resignation announced "for personal reasons"
The news broke Sunday evening via a post on X by Seyed Mehdi Tabatabaei, deputy for communications and information in the Iranian president's office, who said Pezeshkian had accepted Paknejad's resignation. In an interview aired on state broadcaster IRIB TV, Tabatabaei said Paknejad had originally tendered his resignation "a long time ago" citing personal reasons, and Pezeshkian had initially asked him to stay — but accepted his departure after the minister insisted on leaving, commending "his efforts and sincere service."
Paknejad had led Iran's petroleum ministry since August 2024, when he won parliament's vote of confidence. Just before news of his exit surfaced, state media quoted him as insisting that oil money was still flowing: "The revenues of the oil that we have sold are still coming and that will continue, God willing."
Who is Hamid Bovard?
The incoming acting minister is no outsider: Hamid Bovard served as deputy petroleum minister and managing director of the National Iranian Oil Company, the state-owned giant that controls Iran's crude production. He previously ran NIOC subsidiaries including the Maroun Oil and Gas Company and the National South Oilfields Company. In his decree appointing Bovard caretaker, President Pezeshkian cited Article 135 of the constitution and Bovard's "commitment, competence, and executive record," according to Mehr News.
A ministry under wartime pressure
The resignation lands at a moment of acute strain. The Iran-US war, now in its seventh month, has put Tehran's oil exports — the lifeline of its economy — under what amounts to a US naval blockade on petroleum shipments. Tehran, for its part, tightened its grip on the Strait of Hormuz on February 28, barring safe passage for vessels tied to Israel or the United States after joint strikes on Iranian territory. The critical waterway previously carried roughly 20 percent of the world's crude oil and LNG supplies.
The economic fallout has reached Iranian streets: media reports describe long queues at petrol stations in Tehran and other major cities. State media, including Arab News and Reuters, note that the war's pressure on the economy forms the backdrop to the minister's exit, even as the official reason given is personal.
What to watch next
Bovard's appointment is as acting minister — a permanent replacement will need a parliamentary confidence vote, and Tehran watchers will be looking for any sign of internal friction over economic management. Meanwhile, diplomacy continues on a parallel track: Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Sunday that Iran is reviewing US views, relayed through mediators, on Tehran's recent proposal to cease hostilities and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Sources: Arab News / Reuters, Times Now, Mehr News Agency, The Siasat Daily