Iran to boost investment in oil, gas sectors 

(MENAFN - Qatar News Agency) Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Mohammed Nejad said that the country is working on 22 contracts to boost its capacity in the oil and gas sectors.

"Positive steps have been taken during the past years to seal contracts to attract investment (in the oil and gas sectors) within the framework of the Fourth Development Plan," Deputy Head of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) for Investment Hojjatollah Qanimifard said in an interview with Fars News Agency (FNA) on Tuesday.

Qanimifard announced that 4 out of 22 contracts for developments in Iran''s oil and gas sectors have been completed by 90% and reviews and studies on the other contracts are underway. Qanimifard underlined that the country''s oil sector has managed to finalize a number of contracts, including a deal on the development of the phase 11 of the South Pars field, despite all the existing problems.

"With the finalization and implementation of those contracts, we will witness considerable development measures in upstream sectors," the official added.

The South Pars gas field has reserves of about 14 trillion cubic meters of gas, or about eight percent of the world''s reserves. In June 2009, Iran and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) signed a contract for development of the upstream sector of phase 11 in the offshore South Pars gas field. In September, Managing Director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Seyfollah Jashnsaz said he was pleased to see a proper speed in the implementation of the development projects of phases 12, 15, 16, 17, 18, adding that the relevant responsibilities for the start of operations in phases 19, 20 and 21 have also been entrusted to contractors.