In a bid to boost Iran's oil and gas production capacity, the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has decided to cooperate with a consortium, made up of six international oil majors. The foreign firms will provide NIOC with technical know-how and carry out research projects, over an initial five-year period.
The consortium members—British Petroleum, France's TotalFinaElf, Norway's Statoil and Norsk Hydro, Malaysia's Petronas and the Russian Tatneft—have each committed to pay NIOC up to $300,000 annually for the right to operate in Iran, reported national news agency IRNA.
The Iranian government also issued an invitation this week to Indian firms to participate in its upstream and downstream industries, as part of efforts to enhance bilateral commercial relations between the two nations, on the heels of a high profile visit of Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Tehran. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
