TEHRAN – Iranian acting banks are authorized to offer up to $3 billion of loans to the oil industry’s upstream sector, according to the country’s budget bill for the next calendar year (starts on March 19, 2020), IRNA reported.

Private sector investors, cooperatives and non-governmental entities can use these facilities for development projects in the oil and gas industry’s upstream sector.
As reported, development projects of shared fields including increasing the fields’ recovery factor, revitalizing old fields and collecting flare gases, are the priority in this program.

Since the re-imposition of U.S. sanctions, the Iranian oil ministry has been encouraging domestic companies’ presence in its oil and gas projects, both in exploration and in development sectors. 

As there are many blocks waiting for exploration and development, the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) is seriously following up on the plans to lay the ground for the private sector’s contribution.

In late August, NIOC announced that it has introduced 10 major oil and gas exploration projects in the company’s Exploration Directorate.

In early September, the country's Supreme Council of Economic Coordination thoroughly discussed the issue of implementing Iran's oil projects by domestic contractors in the council’s 38th session and rules and regulations pertaining to the subject were approved by the council.

EF/MA