Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19
By Dalga Khatinoglu -- Trend:
Austrian company OMV says it is monitoring situation in Iran, but it is too early to draw any final conclusions regarding possible business in the Islamic Republic.
Though the European top officials have started visiting Iran since the sealed nuclear deal on July 14, however, Austrian President Heinz Fischer was the first head of a Western state that traveled to Iran on Sep.8.
Meanwhile, big Australian delegation composed of 240 company representatives, including OMV's Chief Executive Officer Rainer Seele arrived in Tehran before him.
According to Shana News Agency, Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh and Rainer Seele met in Tehran on Sep.7 to explore ways for expansion of bilateral ties.
Corporate spokesperson for OMV Robert Lechner told Trend on Sep.19 that Media Relations OMV is closely monitoring the situation and the developments in Iran.
"As our CEO, Rainer Seele, said: the country could provide interesting opportunities for OMV. And he has underlined this by attending an Austrian business delegation (of 240 managers) to Iran," said Lechner.
"However, it is too early to draw final conclusions concerning specific investments," he added.
He also said that "OMV is operating an office in Tehran which has never been shut-down, even during political difficult periods".
In April 2007, OMV signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Iranian Oil Company that envisaged OMV participating in Phase 12 of Iran's South Pars gas field and in a plant that would liquefy the field's gas for export in LNG tankers. However, the project was stalled following pressure from the U.S. and European governments over Iran's nuclear program.
Earlier, Deputy Petroleum Minister for International Affairs and Commerce Amir-Hossein Zamani-Nia announced that OMV has expressed its readiness to cooperate with Iran in the area of oil wells stimulation, if the US-led sanctions are lifted.
"Using new technologies, OMV is ready to double production of Iran's oil and gas fields through Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) and Improved Oil Recovery (IOR) methods," he told Shana following a meeting between Zangeneh and Rainer Seele.
It is unclear how much damage will Iran suffer in attracting foreign companies, considering low oil prices and the nationwide ban on PSA contracts.
On the other hand, OMV said it would cut average annual capital expenditure from 2015 to 2017 to between 2.5 billion euros and 3.0 billion, of which the lower end was based on an oil price assumption of approximately $50 per barrel for the next three years.
Before the drop in oil prices, the company had planned to spend €3.9 billion each year during 2014-16. This while, Iran says it needs $185 billion investment by 2020 in oil and gas sector.
