TEHRAN -- About 300 knowledge-based companies are now active in the field of oil industry in Iran, an advisor to vice president for science and technology said on Monday.

In his meeting with Iranian researchers and academics  on Sunday Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said universities should be familiarized with problems of the industry sector in order to gain self-sufficiency for the country in the oil and power sectors.

“Foreign [oil] companies imposed some conditions to Iranian part in their contract for extracting oil,” Mehr quoted Ali Vatani as saying.

The government supports knowledge-based companies which are active in providing equipment and components for petrochemical production, he explained.

The government supports knowledge-based companies which are active in providing equipment and components for petrochemical production

The science and technology vice presidency, Oil Ministry and domestic universities are cooperating with each other to develop oil industry technologies, Vatani added. 

Knowledge-based companies and graduated students of oil industry are main factors to achieve self-sufficiency in this field, he said.

The private sector also plays an important role in development of the oil industry, he added.

Oil industry technology is not more complicated than nuclear technology, hence we can reach it in the near future, he concluded.

‘National will needed to improve oil technology’ 

A national will is needed for Iranians to reach technology in extracting oil, Academic Center for Education, Culture and Research Director Hamidreza Tayyebi told Mehr on Monday.

Up-to-date equipment, reference library and equipped laboratories are important factors to develop technology in the field of oil industry, he said.

Like many other type of technology, improving technology in oil industry is a time-consuming process, he explained.

A number of universities and research centers are now responsible for exploiting oil resources, he said.

Tasking a specific university with conducting activities related to extraction and increasing recovery rate of oil reserves could help us reach our objectives sooner, he proposed.

SB/MQ/MG