Oil Minister Bijan Namdar-Zangheneh has asked a Japan to encourage investment in Iranian oil and gas projects, radio reports said Tuesday, July 17. Zangheneh was speaking at a meeting late Monday with a Japanese trade delegation headed by Mitsubishi CEO Nobuyuki Masuda.
The delegation, the largest since the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, comprises officials from Japan's trade and industry ministry as well as executives from some 30 companies. The Iranian minister called for "greater participation by Japanese firms in oil and gas as well as petrochemical projects in Iran, the radio said.
Iran is Japan's third largest oil supplier and at the end of June, Tokyo announced plans to develop the Azadegan oil field in Iran. If the project goes ahead, it could become Japan's largest oil field development.
On Sunday, the two signed a protocol agreement valued at $10 million for Japanese participation in exploration of the Azadegan field.— (AFP)
© Agence France Presse
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
