ASSALUYEH - Domestic companies were the main contractors of the five newly inaugurated phases of the South Pars gas field (both in terms of investment and technology) and foreigners just supplied some equipment, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh told the Tehran Times on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters in a press conference, he said [development of] South Pars gas field is a perfect symbol of ‘resistance economy’, which stresses minimum reliance on foreign resources in running the country.

The minister made the remarks also in a ceremony held in the southwestern port city of Assaluyeh where President Hassan Rouhani formally inaugurated five development phases of the field.

South Pars is part of a huge offshore field, shared with Qatar in the Persian Gulf. The field is estimated to hold about 8 percent of the world’s natural gas reserves.

The five newly inaugurated phases, namely 17-21, will add 150 million cubic meters (mcm) to the field’s current daily gas output of about 570 mcm to push Iran’s gas extraction from the joint field up to equate that of Qatar.

These phases will also add to Iran’s production and export of gas condensate, LPG, and ethane.

“Our plans are very bright and promising for the future,” Zanganeh highlighted in the inaugural ceremony.

 ‘South Pars output at 1060bcm since start of development’

Addressing the same ceremony, Ali Kardor, the managing director of National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), announced that some 1060 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas has been extracted from South Pars since starting its development (19 years ago).

He also said daily output of the field has increased to 570 mcm in the past Iranian calendar year 1395 (ended on March 20) from 285 mcm in the calendar year 1392.

The annual output hit a record in the past calendar year to stand at 155 bcm, the official highlighted.

 ‘$71b invested for developing South Pars’

Elsewhere in his remarks, Kardor announced that $71 billion has been already invested for development of South Pars, of which $19 billion has been secured from the internal sources of Oil Ministry and the rest $52 billion from external sources such as National Development Fund (NDF), banks and issuance of securities.

He also put the investment made for the five newly inaugurated phases at $17.4 billion, of which $5.9 billion has been obtained from the internal sources and the rest were the loans.

 ‘Each 2 phases of South Pars account for 1% of GDP growth’

The minister put the worth of each two phases of South Pars at about $3.5-4 billion and said each two phases account for one percent of growth in the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

“We have 27 phases under development in South Pars and with Total coming to develop two other phases the number will reach 29,” Zanganeh said in the press conference.