“Russian Lukoil has agreed to bid for development projects in North Azadegan, Kushk and Hosseinieh fields,” Deputy Oil Minister for International Affairs Hadi Nejad-Hosseinian told the Petroenergy Information Network. He said that President of the Russian oil company Wahid Ali Akbarov is visiting Tehran for talks with the officials at the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) on the development projects. Nejad-Hosseinian said Lukoil is seriously following up offers for development of 16 oil blocks in Iran. He added that the Russian company has bought documents for four blocks. “Lukoil is swapping 25,000 barrels per day of oil with Iran and we have conducted talks to boost the amount,” the official stated. Lukoil is considering to offer 12-20 percent of its output outside Russia up to 2013. It is supposed to spend 400 million dollars for oil and gas exploration outside Russia in 2006. The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has put on international tender the exploration and development of 16 newly-defined oil blocks. The 16 blocks going on tender are: Moghan I and II, Kouh-Dasht, Khorram-Abad, Kermanshah, Bijar, East/West Makran, Zabol, West Jazmourian, Saravan, Tabas, Garmsar, Saveh, Raaz and Maraveh Tappeh. The needed investment covering exploration activity differs from one block to another, but based on the assessments done by the NIOC the average cost is in the neighborhood of $30 to $40 million. The 16 blocks, located both onshore and offshore and chosen on the basis of consumption needs of the regions in which they are and proximity to oil processing facilities, encompass an area of 253,000 square kilometers. They are among an overall 51 new exploratory blocks defined by the NIOC in different parts of the country. In a reversal of past practice and in order to improve the attractiveness of the contracts, the NIOC will be able to sign the exploration, appraisal and development phases of each block as parts of one contract. If a contractor manages to come up with a commercially viable field, the NIOC will pay all the expenses incurred in exploration and development phases along with a remuneration from the sale of the production in the block whose rate will be specified in the contract. Exempted from the above authorization are blocks in four oil-rich provinces in southern Iran, namely: Khuzestan, Bushehr, Kohkilouyeh, Ilam along with those in the Persian Gulf waterway.