Iran puts "50 oil and gas fields" up for tender
Iran is putting fifty oil and gas projects up for bids from foreign companies. All of these projects will be awarded to foreign companies based on a new type of oil contract called "IPC".
According to documents from the Ministry of Oil, foreign companies must select a partner from among Iranian companies to develop these fields.
According to news agencies on Monday, October 17, the National Iranian Oil Company announced that 29 oil fields and 21 gas fields will be put up for tender for the participation of foreign companies.
The Iranian Oil Company has asked foreign parties to submit their applications by November 19, and the winners of the tender will be announced by December 8.
Apparently, the list of fields that Iran wants to put up for tender is the same list that was presented to foreign companies at the Tehran conference last December.
In that list, 21 gas fields were proposed with the aim of producing 380 million cubic meters of gas per day. 29 oil fields were also proposed, but without mentioning the final volume of oil production. It was only estimated that these fields would also add up to 200 million cubic meters of associated gas per day to the country's production.
Associated gas is gas extracted from oil fields with crude oil. However, Iran recently announced that it plans to increase its daily crude oil production to 5 to 5.5 million barrels per day within the next four years.
Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh announced on Monday that the Sixth Development Plan requires $134 billion in investment in oil and gas production and $52 billion in petrochemicals.
Iran hopes to attract about $150 billion in foreign investment in the oil, gas, and petrochemical sectors by 2020.
Meanwhile, the Associated Press, referring to Iran's current daily production of 3.85 million barrels of crude oil, writes that Tehran is not willing to join the oil freeze (stopping production growth) until this figure reaches four million barrels.
The Associated Press noted that the first OPEC members agreed to cut production by 33 million barrels per day at a meeting in Algiers last month, and that Iran welcomed the decision. OPEC members are expected to reach an agreement next month on freezing or even cutting production.
Amir Hossein Zamaninia, Iran's deputy oil minister, says the decision was "a small step, but in the right direction."
Regarding the development of oil and gas fields, the report notes that Iranian authorities have previously stated that priority is given to fields shared with neighboring countries. Iran has 28 oil and gas fields shared with its neighbors.
Ali Kardar, head of the National Iranian Oil Company, announced on Monday that the first tender will be for the development of the Azadegan field, which is shared with Iraq.
Source: Radio Farda
