Azernews.Az

By Nigar Abbasova

The Islamic Republic of Iran, the fourth country in the world for the volume of proven oil reserves, is now seeking to sign new agreements with foreign companies to recover its energy sector.

The state-run National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) is planning to sign an agreement with the Swiss Vitol energy and commodities company on the sale of oil and gas condensate, Fars agency reported.

Details of the agreement have not yet been disclosed. However, NIOC is expected to sale oil to the European company at a discount rate within two years, while Vitol, in return, will issue a credit on easy terms. NIOC has recently signed an agreement with Vitol on petrol purchases.

Vitol has also expressed its interest in oil swaps with the Caspian Sea littoral states by means of the Neka oil terminal located in Iran.

A Swiss delegation comprising representatives of Vitol has recently visited facilities and infrastructures of the terminal, which is considered to be Iran’s largest crude terminal in the Caspian Sea.

Meanwhile, NIOC’s official earlier announced that Iran is ready to raise its oil production to 4 million barrels per day (bpd) in a couple of month, depending on market demand, Reuters reported.

A new model of oil contracts, also known as Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC) is considered to be one of the main tools for reviving energy sector in the country. The IPC offers more flexible terms on investment risks, making the country attractive for foreign investors.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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