With change in administrations, western firms renew interest in Iran gas
Thursday, June 11, 2009 E-Mail this story Free Headline Alerts
NICOSIA Ñ Two Western energy majors have renewed their interest in Iran.
Royal Dutch Shell and Repsol have submitted another proposal for production at Iran's South Pars natural gas field.
Officials said the proposal was the first since the two European companies signed an agreement with Iran on South Pars in 2002. "Shell and Repsol have offered a new proposal for initial production of Phase 13 and 14 of South Pars gasfield," Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari said on June 9.
Iran had threatened to cancel the 2002 deal unless Repsol and Shell agreed to commit to a timetable to develop South Pars.
In 2008, Shell, concerned over U.S. sanctions on companies that invest in Iran, refrained from a decision on whether to develop liquefied natural gas for Iran.