Azerbaijan, Baku, May 01/ Trend F.Milad/
All the development plans relating to Iran's joint oil and gas fields will be signed in the current calendar year, which began on March 20, the managing director of the National Iranian Oil Company stated.
Speaking to reporters in Tehran during the signing of a deal to develop the Mansouri oilfield, NIOC head Ahmad Qalebani added that $20-25 billion worth of contracts will be concluded by the end of the year.
According to national development plans, crude oil and natural gas outputs should reach 5.1 million barrels and 1.4 billion cubic meters per day by 2015, respectively, the ISNA News Agency quoted Qalebani as saying.
Two Iranian companies signed a deal worth around $1 billion to develop the Masouri oilfield which is located about 60 kilometres north of the Persian Gulf and near the south-western city of Ahvaz.
Matn and Energy Tadbir signed the deal in Tehran on Tuesday, the Fars News Agency reported.
According to the deal, the oilfield's output will be boosted to 150,000 barrels per day (bpd) from 100,000 bpd.
Iran has attached a priority to boosting gas production capacity from its joint oilfields with Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi has ordered all contractors of the South Pars gas field development projects to work round the clock in three shifts to complete development of all phases, especially phases 12, 15, 16, 17 and 18.
The South Pars gas field is shared by Iran and Qatar. The Iranian share, which is divided into 29 phases, has about 14 trillion cubic meters of gas, or about eight per cent of the total world reserves and more than 18 billion barrels of liquefied natural gas resources.
Iran sits on the world's second largest natural gas reserves after Russia and is trying to grow its gas production by increasing foreign and domestic investments, especially in its South Pars gas field.