Petroleum Iran Oil and Gas

Seeking to redefine the role of oil and gas

Moreover , the  newly  identified  approaches  to  the  industry  at  large , have  spawned  certain  policy  changes  and  significant  initiatives , for  redefining  the  role  of  oil  and  gas  in  the  country’s  economy . A  number  of  which  are :

  • The  policy  for  attracting  foreign  investment  and know-how  through  the  buy-   back  agreements .
  • Embarking  on  part-privatization  and  decentralization of  the  petroleum  sector.
  • Creating  the  much-needed  stabilization  fund.
  • Capacity  building  in  related  local  industries .
  • Augmenting  the  domestic  added  value  in  the  chain of  activities  within  the  hydrocarbon  sector.

Broadly  speaking  ,within  Iran, there  is  an  increasing  emphasis  on  privatization  of  downstream  energy  facilities , increasing  efficiency  and conservation  of  energy. Diversification  of  sources  of  energy ,with a  notable  emphasis  on  gas  substitution , is  favored  and environmental  issues  are  starting  to  be  emphasized, as  well .This  trend  of  course , shall  remain .

For  small  projects  and  enterprises, there  are  pretty  good  prospects ; However , for  larger  operations  we  will  probably  have  some  challenges . For example, giving  up  ownership  of  gas  stations  owned  by  the  state, undertaking  maintenance  of  facilities which  has traditionally been  carried  out  by  NIOC  and NIGC  and engineering  works traditionally  handled  by  government  companies. These  are possible. But  selling  refineries, for  example, would  in all ,likelihood  generate  certain  problems.

For  middle-ranking  projects, the  government  is  also  doing everything  it  can  to  support  Iranian  contractors. And  while expatriates  are  still  very  much  in  demand  for  big  projects , even then, the  favored  option  is  for  them  to  develop  joint  ventures  with  Iranian  companies, especially  from  the  private  or semi-private sector.