Addressing the 6th Drilling Industry Congress and Exhibition here in Tehran on Saturday, Seyed Saleh Hendi, director of exploration at NIOC, said of over 250 oil reserves ever discovered in Iran, still 120 were undeveloped and 100 gas reserves were yet to be developed in the country of a total of 130 despite all the hardships Iran’s oil industry had undergone over the past century.

He said Iran’s oil industry was in need of fresh blood in order to progress.

“Although great achievements have been made in the industry over the past 40 years (since the victory of the Islamic Revolution), this does not mean that things could not have been done in a better way and there is still a lot that needs to be done in the sector,” the official said.

Hendi added that a lot had been done in exploration of unconventional oil resources including shale oil and gas in Iran, but development of unconventional reserves was not a priority for NIOC for the time being and the private sector is needed to step in the sector.

This year's event includes 30 specialist panels, 5 workshops and over 100 presentations and lectures on the dimensions and requirements of projects on enhancement and maintenance of production from the technical, financial, legal, contractual, insurance and risk management viewpoints.

Moreover, reviewing business strategies in exploration and production companies, general contractors, drilling companies, and technical services is top on the agenda of the congress.