Iran will resort to its internal resources in line with the economy of resistance, in case sanctions are not lifted, said an official at the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), also announcing details of projects to be offered at the London seminar in February.
Sepehr, Sohrab, Dasht-e Abdan and Arvand oil fields, as well as phase 11 of South Pars gas field are among the projects which will be announced at the seminar in which Iran's petroleum contracts (IPC) will be unveiled for the first time, Moshtagh-Ali Gohari, deputy managing director for comparative planning at NIOC, was quoted by ISNA as saying.
There are also projects for the exploration and development of new fields.
Projects will be carried out using internal funds available to the NIOC in the case of insufficient foreign investment and if the sanctions are not annulled. This includes the National Development Fund of Iran (NDFI), provision of Note 2(G) of the budget law, and domestic investors (e.g. national banks). Buy-back agreements, and fixed rate bonds are among other financial instruments available to the NIOC. The provision in note 2(G) of the budget enables the NIOC to invest up to $100 billion in oil and gas projects through private contractors.
Sanctions imposed by foreign powers over Tehran's nuclear program made it difficult to import the required technology, or attract the much-needed investment in the oil and gas industry. Hence, the new oil contract was drafted to attract energy giants.
The new contract aims to attract foreign capital, services, know-how and technology, integrate the exploration, development, and production phases, and reduce investment risks by offering more flexibility in investment costs.
