Iran's South Pars bonds sales hit $408 mln

Azerbaijan, Baku, July 4/Trend M. Moezzi

In the first five days of their offering, participation bonds for Iran's joint South Pars oil and gas field racked up nearly $408 million (USD) in sales.

The bonds were issued by the South Pars Oil and Gas Company on June 26 in the first phase of the offer, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reports.

The sale is designed to bring in funding for finishing the remaining phases of the joint South Pars oil and gas field in the Persian Gulf. The Central Bank of Iran has issued the South Pars Oil and Gas Company the permits it needs for future offerings.

The bonds have bear a 20 percent annual interest rate and are tax exempt.

Iran and Qatar share the South Pars gas field. The Iranian portion is divided into 24 phases, 10 of which have been finished. In June of 2010, contractors signed agreements to development eight other South Pars phases, (13, 14, 19, 20, 21, and 22 to 24) on a 35-month deadline.

Qatar began work on South Pars ten years before Iran and has intensified developing the field while Iran has suffered setbacks from international sanctions and technical and financial problems. Iran is racing to speed up its development of South Pars to avoid losing anymore of the field's resources to Qatar.