TEHRAN – The head of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has said the company is going to ink contracts worth $14 billion with domestic companies for the development of the country’s oil and gas fields by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 19).

Speaking in a televised interview, Mohsen Khojasteh-Mehr said a plan for boosting the recovery factor of south Pars gas field wells is also on the agenda and will be started by the end of the current year, Tasnim News Agency reported.

“We are active in exploration, development, production, transfer, and export in almost all provinces of the country,” Khojasteh-Mehr said.

Mentioning the maintenance of gas production in the cold season, the official said: “Currently, the National Iranian Oil Company produces one billion cubic meters of gas per day, most of which is used for domestic and commercial purposes, and the rest is consumed in power plants and industries.”

He further stressed that all the projects defined in the Oil Ministry and the National Iranian Oil Company have been aimed at production growth, adding: “In the 13th government, oil production has increased by 60 percent, and this increase in production is due to the increase in crude oil and gas condensate exports which have been up to three times more than the previous government.”

“During the current government administration, 70 million cubic meters have also been added to the country’s gas production capacity, which leads to more income and export value for the country,” the official added.

According to the NIOC head, currently, the production of gas from the South Pars gas field, which accounts for 70 percent of Iran’s gas output, has reached more than 700 million cubic meters per day.

South Pars gas field, which Iran shares with Qatar in the Persian Gulf, is estimated to contain a significant amount of natural gas, accounting for about eight percent of the world’s reserves, and approximately 18 billion barrels of condensate. The field is divided into 24 standard phases.

EF/MA