Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 12/ Trend F.Milad/
Iran has sold up to 14 trillion rials (some $1.1 billion) in bonds during past week to finance the South Pars gas field's development plans, Shana news agency quotes the National Iranian Oil Company's managing director as saying.
Five billion dollars in bonds will be issued in the current Iranian calendar year (to end March 19, 2012) to accelerate the implementation of South Pars gas field projects, NIOC head Ahmad Qalebani added.
On Nov.26, 2011, $500 million in bonds was offered with a 17 percent yield, but there was little uptake.
According to Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi, Iran will also issue $15 billion in sukuk (Islamic Sharia-based) bonds in the current year to be invested in the domestic oil industry.
Iran's national budget for the next calendar year envisages issuing €12.5 billion in bonds to finance domestic oil projects.
The South Pars gas field is shared by Iran and Qatar. The Iranian share, which is divided into 29 phases, hits about 14 trillion cubic meters of gas, or about eight percent of the total world reserves, and more than 18 billion barrels of liquefied gas resources.