These oilfields were initially developed by Chinese companies, such as Sinopec and China National Petroleum Corp, however following their lackluster performance which were found wanting, Iranian officials have now thrown open the doors to international players.
A per a senior Iranian official, Iran plans on asking international oil companies to bid for the second phase of development of its North Azadegan and Yadavaran oilfields.
This development is significant for Chinese companies, including Sinopec and China National Petroleum Corp which have, until now played a leading role in developing the oil fields. Now they will face competition from other players.
“CNPC would like to extend its North Azadegan contract, but we have announced that …they should take part in the bidding for a new contract,” said Gholamreza Manouchehri, the deputy head of Iran’s National Iranian Oil Company.
He went on to add, “The Chinese have finally accepted this proposal.”
Manouchehri however did not provide details, including the timing, of the tender.
Following the lifting of the U.S. led sanction, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had officially launched the first phase of developing the North Azadegan and the Yadavaran oilfields last month in November.
As per the Iranian oil Ministry, North Azadegan’s production is slated to be at 75,000 bpd while the Yadavaran fields will output up to 115,000 bpd in its first phase.
In 2007, following the clamping down of U.S. led sanctions, European and Japanese companies were forced to pull out from the country. This is when Chinese companies filled the gap and helped develop the oil fields.
In December 2007, Iran had said Sinopec would invest approximately $2 billion to develop the massive Yadavaran oil field.
In January 2009, CNPC signed a $2 billion deal with Iran to develop the North Azadegan oilfield. However, following repeated appeals by Iran to work on this oilfield, which were ignored by the Chinese, In April 2014, Iran terminated its contract with the Chinese energy giant.
Iranian news agency, IRNA has been quoted as saying, Chinese companies faces “some criticism of their performance,” said IRNA without elaborating.
“There have also been talks with Sinopec regarding the Yadavaran field for which an international tender is set to be held,” said Manouchehri, according to a IRNA report.
The North Azadegan and Yadavaran oil fields have oil reserves worth 5.7 billion and 31 billion, respectively.
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