Tehran, Iran, September 17
By Mehdi Sepahvand –- Trend:
Iran’s Parliament has given the green light to the government to put its long controversial new oil contract model into effect.
The new model called Iran Petroleum Contract was reviewed by a parliamentary panel but not voted by lawmakers, the Oil Ministry’s SHANA news agency reported September 17.
“After examining the new contract model, the parliament board on the conformity of government bills with laws declared it not in contradiction with the upstream rules,” Shana quoted MP Asadollah Qareh-Khani as saying.
Under severe disapproval by mostly government critics, the IPC model has been modified several times to meet their concerns about possible flaws.
“The government, in its third draft, took into account the concerns of the critics and sympathizers of the establishment; and the board on conformity declared the new oil contract in compliance with upstream rules,” Qareh-Khani said.
The IPC, often referred to by the government as a hybrid model, will replace the old buy-back contract. It is being advertised as a risk service contract which includes integrated exploration, development and production.
The government has been working on the model for the past two years in order to lure foreign investment to its oil and gas sector.
Ali Kardor, deputy minister of oil, said the same day that some $10 billion of oil and gas contracts have been prepared to be signed by the end of the current Iranian fiscal year (March 20).