Hossein Afshin spoke Thursday on the sidelines of the 29th International Oil, Gas, Refining & Petrochemical Exhibition (Iran Oil Show 2025) during the signing ceremony for first-time contracts.

He said: "The initiative for first-time contracts began with a high-level directive to allow government agencies to bypass formalities and enter into first-time contracts."

Referring to the volume of contracts signed by the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology with executive agencies, he added: "The approved value of first-time contracts so far has been $300 million, and with today's signings, this figure will reach $500 million."

The vice president noted that the Oil Ministry's first-time contracts have so far amounted to $200 million, adding: "The key point about today's contracts is that the Oil Ministry has had the most outstanding performance in these agreements."

Afshin emphasized that the ministry has cooperated the most with knowledge-based companies, stating: "On behalf of the country's elites, I would like to thank the Oil Ministry and the oil minister personally." He added: "We call on other ministries to take advantage of first-time contracts. This is undoubtedly a major step forward for the nation and NTBFs."

The vice president said the National Iranian Oil Company, the National Iranian South Oil Company and the Iranian Offshore Oil Company have been the top performers in signing first-time contracts. "We are pleased that in the ‘Year of Production Investment,’ these contracts are being signed operationally today," he said.

The 29th International Oil, Gas, Refining & Petrochemical Exhibition (Iran Oil Show 2025) is being held over four days starting May 8 at the Tehran Permanent International Fairgrounds.