Addressing the Session to Introduce Opportunities and Framework for Investment in Drilling Rig Service Provision within Guaranteed Purchase Contracts, Mohsen Khojastehmehr added Iran’s crude oil and natural gas on aggregate is equal to 340 billion barrels of oil.

The country’s unconventional resources have yet to be added to the figure, noted the CEO of NIOC, adding, “We are conducting initial studies to add shale oil and gas reserves and clathrate (gas) hydrates to Iran’s oil and gas reservoirs.”

Iran is a rich country in terms of underground resources and it is necessary to have long-term goals for utilizing them, he underlined.

Drilling forms central core of NIOC activity

Drilling is the central core of the NIOC’s activity, said Khojastehmehr, adding nothing will be left of the upstream sector if drilling is detached.

Development and overhaul operations in the upstream sector are in need of drilling, he pointed out.

The drilling sector is the most resilient part of oil industry, stated the NIOC chief, continuing oil and gas production would face challenges if the industry lacked drilling.

More than 50 percent of capital required for the development of an oil or gas field is related to the drilling sector, the deputy oil minister added.

10-year contracts

Both light and heavy drilling rigs are needed, emphasized the NIOC head, saying 10-year contracts will be signed with private companies to meet the industry’s needs.

The contracts will be signed in foreign currencies and advance payments will be made for purchasing or renting drilling rigs, said Khojastehmehr, adding the measures are aimed at facilitating the contracts’ terms and conditions.

Big contracts on oil and gas production will be signed in the near future, pledged the official, adding drilling rigs are required to achieve the goal.