Iran is ready to initiate crude exports to Indonesia, director of foreign affairs at Iran's Oil Ministry said.
Speaking on the sidelines of a two-day trip of an Indonesian trade delegation to the Islamic Republic on Wednesday, Seyyed Mohsen Qamsari said the National Iranian Oil Company's policy is to sell oil to all interested companies and refineries.
"We are ready to consider oil exports to Indonesia, if they approach with an official bid," Qamsari was quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency. A 27-strong trade delegation from Indonesia, including the country’s Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Sudirman Said and Indonesian President’s special envoy to the Middle East, Alwi Shihab, arrived in Tehran on Wednesday.
Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh and Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian were slated to meet with Indonesian officials in separate meetings to explore grounds for cooperation in the energy sector, namely oil, liquefied natural gas and gas condensate exports and transfer of power generation knowhow to the Southeast Asian country.
The arrival of Indonesian mission is part of efforts to build on the two country's fast-developing relations.
Less than a week before the landmark July 14 nuclear agreement was reached between Iran and six world powers in Vienna, Tehran said it had reached a final agreement with Beijing and Jakarta to build a refinery in Indonesia's East Java Island with a capacity of 150,000 barrels of oil per day, based on which the Persian Gulf country will supply raw material and participate in financing the project.
Indonesia is planning a return to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in December after a six-year break.
The move will expand the group's members to 13 and add about 900,000 bpd to OPEC output. Indonesia will become the OPEC's fourth-smallest producer.
The country pumped 910,000 bpd in August and the 12 current OPEC members produced 31.57 million bpd, according to the International Energy Agency.
