The new model scheduled to be unveiled in this conference is aimed at encouraging foreign investors to cooperate in Iran’s oil and gas projects.
New oil contracts with foreign companies will be signed in the more attractive IPC (Iran Petroleum Contract) framework.
Under the new formula, Iran will cede exploration, development and production operations on its oilfields exclusively to foreign contractors.
Attraction of investments, transfer of technology, and optimized use of local contractors are among the responsibilities of foreign companies.
Addressing the opening ceremony, Iran’s Oil Minister Zanganeh said that while the new oil model is not “ideal”, it can suit the needs of the Iranian Oil Company and those of foreign firms under current circumstances.
He also underlined the need for exploration and development of Iran’s gas and oil fields and an increase in the production capacity, the recovery rate in gas and oil fields, the transfer and localization of technology, and supporting domestic private companies.
During the conference, some 50 projects will be introduced within the framework of the ministry’s new model.
The legal and commercial aspects of new contracts, the capacities for investment in Iran, the country’s ongoing plans and projects, and the development policies for Iran’s oil ministry are among the issues due to be addressed in the conference.
Iranian Vice-President for Legal Affairs Elham Aminzadeh, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, several senior Iranian oil industrialists, and the representatives of Iranian and foreign companies are attending the event in Tehran.
Representatives of 137 companies, including British Petroleum (BP), Italy’s Eni, Russia’s Gaz Prom, Gaz Prom Neft and Lukoil, Indian Oil Corporation, Denmark’s Maersk, Malaysia’s Petronas, France’s Total, and the UAE’s Shell EP International are also present in the conference.
Besides the ongoing meeting, another conference is scheduled to be held in the British capital of London on February 22 to 24, 2016 to introduce Iran's attractive oil contract models to European investors.
Such conferences are to provide the perfect platform to discuss Iran’s re-entry to the global energy arena.
Tehran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) on July 14 reached a conclusion over the text of a comprehensive 159-page deal on Tehran’s nuclear program.
The comprehensive nuclear deal between Iran and the six powers would terminate all nuclear-related sanctions imposed on Iran after coming into force, and help the country return to the global market.
Experts believe that Iran’s economic growth would rise remarkably after the final nuclear deal takes effect.