Ali Pourkabirian, Director of Legal Affairs at the National Iranian Oil Company, outlined the structure and mandate of the directorate and discussed the goals and achievements of the SAHN system, the company's record in legal proceedings, and the directorate's activities during the 12-day and 40-day wars.

The interview follows below.

What departments make up NIOC's Legal Affairs Directorate, and what are its responsibilities?

The Legal Affairs Directorate of NIOC is composed of several units, including Contracts, Domestic and International Litigation, Foreign Contracts, and Advisory Services and Land Affairs.

The Advisory Services and Land Affairs unit is mainly responsible for drafting regulations and directives, interpreting rules, and providing legal advice. Managing the legal affairs of land under NIOC's authority is another of its duties.

The Domestic and International Litigation unit follows up on and handles all cases brought against or on behalf of NIOC before domestic and international judicial authorities.

The Foreign Contracts unit finalizes negotiations and upstream contracts for the development of oil and gas fields, while the Domestic Contracts unit manages the organization, negotiation, and drafting of contracts with NIOC's various contractors.

What was the purpose behind launching the SAHN system, and what has it achieved?

Launching the SAHN system was one of the major initiatives of NIOC's Legal Affairs Directorate under the fourteenth administration. "SAHN" stands for "Oil Legal System" (Ssmsneh-ye Hoqouqi-ye Naft). Although the design contract for the system was signed under the previous administration, most of the implementation and operational work took place under the current one.

Through sustained follow-up, the system has been rolled out across several areas, including contracts, domestic litigation, and land affairs, with 3,200 user accounts created so far for oil industry employees.

Since November of last year (Aban, on the Iranian calendar), all of NIOC's domestic contract processes have been moved onto the platform, and since the beginning of this year, all domestic litigation cases have been registered and tracked through SAHN.

The system is now in use company-wide at NIOC. Once remaining issues are resolved and the necessary approval is obtained from NIOC's board of directors, its use will become mandatory for NIOC's subsidiaries and affiliated companies, and eventually across the entire oil industry.

SAHN was also recognized at the Idea, Product, and Technology Festival as the top national project in the field of administrative reform, receiving a top honor award — an achievement that is a source of pride for NIOC and the Legal Affairs team.

The system's main objectives have been to increase transparency, streamline processes, and reduce human error in NIOC's domestic contracting procedures.

Other goals include creating a framework for monitoring litigation cases across NIOC and its subsidiaries. Knowledge management is another key focus of SAHN: legal experience and insights from colleagues across the oil industry and affiliated companies are recorded and consolidated in the system to help raise employees' legal expertise.

One of the system's key features is its use of artificial intelligence to process recorded data and respond to legal queries.

How has the Legal Affairs Directorate performed in court proceedings?

In the Iranian calendar year 1404 (2025-26), NIOC's Legal Affairs Directorate broke an eight-year record for obtaining final rulings in the company's favor from judicial authorities. About 90 percent of rulings issued in these cases went in NIOC's favor — an unprecedented result over the past eight years.

This year, our goal is to maintain this achievement while further strengthening and improving our performance.

What role did the Legal Affairs Directorate play during the 12-day and 40-day wars?

One might assume that during the two wars we went through, the Legal Affairs Directorate played little role in the company's operations. But the reality is that the company's legal activities never stopped, even under wartime conditions.

During the 12-day war, we received 130 judicial notices from across the country. Since not all parts of the country were affected by the conflict at the same time, legal processes continued throughout that period.

The same held true during the 40-day war, when we received more than 100 judicial notices. Altogether, during these periods, an average of two legal briefs were filed and pursued each day.

Additionally, because some administrative buildings had to be evacuated during the war, we had to continue our work from other locations so that the company's legal processes would not be interrupted.

Without a doubt, a significant part of these achievements is owed to the support of the Minister of Petroleum and the CEO of NIOC for the Legal Affairs Directorate, and I want to express my gratitude for their support and for all the colleagues who stood with us along the way.