By Derek Brower, journalist Who really loses from the sanctions on Iran? THE DECISION of Shell and Repsol to pull out of phase 13 of the development plans at South Pars, Iran’s section of the biggest gasfield in the world, will no doubt be seen as a victory by the hawks in Washington. The companies haven’t officially said why they have withdrawn from the projects, but the subtext is clear: sanctions on Iran are biting, and the majors are backing off. There is no question that the news is a blow to Iran’s liquefied natural (LNG) gas plans. Gas from phase 13 was to have gone to Persian LNG, one of several export plans on the drawing board in Iran. Shell says it hasn’t yet decided whether to proceed with that $10bn development. But, along with Repsol, it hasn’t ruled out participating in future phases of South Pars and, according to reports, the two companies could still act as technical advisors to Nioc, the Iranian state oil company.