Tehran, Iran, Dec. 27
By Kamyar Eghbal – Trend:
Russia’s Gazprom is studying the opportunities to invest in developing Iran’s fuel stations, a senior Iranian official told Trend.
”A high ranking official from Gazprom is in Tehran to discuss investing in the Iranian fuel industry,” Ali Monshi, the head of Iranian center for fuel studies and planning, said on the sidelines of an exhibition in Tehran on December 27.
Saying that owners of fuel stations purchase some 120 billion tomans (about $28.7 million at the free market rates on Wednesday) of products per day and there are about 680 fuel stations in Iran, he added that these figures suggest a promising opportunity for investment in the industry.
Ali Monshi further added that representatives from Japanese and Chinese companies are in talks with Iranian officials to explore avenues for investment in the Islamic Republic.
The official touched upon the existing investment opportunities in the country, saying Iran's fuel stations have lagged behind the world standards and the country needs to renew them.
”A high number of stations in the country have become aged over the past years, therefore there is a chance for foreign companies to invest in developing and updating those sites as well as refining and related industries”
In addition to Gazprom, the Japanese Tatsuno Corporation alongside with companies from China have attended the exhibition to explore investment chances in the country.
FUELEX, the country’s first exhibition on fuel stations and related industries, which started working at the International Trade Fair of Tehran on Sunday, December 24, closed its doors today by holding a conference on investment opportunities.