Iran´s NIOC signed on July 3, 2017, a new contract to develop its giant South Pars gas field with Frances Total and Chinas CNPC, the 1st major Western energy investment since sanctions against Tehran were removed.
A spokesman for Total confirmed the company signed the contract to produce gas for the Iranian market from 2021, adding that the 20-year deal with will be the 1st Iranian Petroleum Contract (IPC) signed in Iran.
Total holds a 50.1% interest in the South Pars project with state-owned CNPC owning 30 % and Iran's Petropars 19.9 %.
The offshore field was 1st developed in the 1990s and Total was one of the biggest investors in Iran until the international sanctions were imposed in 2006 over groundless rumors that Tehran was trying to develop nuclear arms.
Total has decided to return and develop Phase 11 of the South Pars project, which will cost up to $5 billion.
The international contract for development of Phase 11 of South Pars in the framework of IPC was signed today at a ceremony in Tehran attended by Iranian oil minister Zanganeh and senior officials from France’s Total, China’s CNPC and Iran's Petropars.
Total's Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne told Reuters last month that the group would make an initial $1 billion investment after the US extended sanctions relief under the 2015 agreement.
The vast offshore gas field is shared between Iran and Qatar, where Total is also a major player in gas production as well as in oil and refining.
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