In a press conference on Saturday marking the 14th anniversary of the NDF's establishment, Mehdi Ghazanfari stated that in the past, the fund had less involvement in sectors like oil and gas, artificial intelligence, and renewable energy.

However, the NDF now has a dedicated department for these areas, he said noting that in projects such as oil and gas or water supply for the Central Plateau of Iran, the fund’s goal is to expand its share without engaging in direct operations.

Referring to the current electricity deficit, the official noted that the fund has been working with banks to support power generation projects.

Ghazanfari emphasized that increasing oil production by 250,000 barrels per day requires an investment of $3 billion, noting that the fund is set to provide this amount for the National Iranian Oil Company, although no funds have been transferred to the company yet.

He further explained that, based on cash flow analysis, the fund should receive annual oil revenues. However, in the past three years, no new oil revenues have been deposited into the fund.

Since its establishment, the NDF has received $163.67 billion from oil, gas, and gas condensate exports, the official stated.

$23b for 60 energy projects

Alireza Mirmohammad-Sadeqi, a member of the NDF's executive board, also presented a report on the fund’s energy sector performance.

He said the fund has financed 60 oil and gas projects totaling $23 billion over the past 14 years, along with 48 power plant projects worth $4.8 billion to generate 7,000 megawatts.

Additionally, the fund has supported seven transportation projects worth $2.7 billion and one water supply project valued at $600 million. It has also provided $4 billion in loans to 21 small-scale projects.

He added that $26 billion worth of oil and gas projects currently being studied by the fund.

The work on financing the $3 billion project to boost oil production by 250,000 barrels per day is nearly finalized, and $750 million will be paid by the end of this year (March 20).