Exploration, development and production of Iran's fields and reservoirs through the Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC)

Abstract

After nearly four decades, the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) introduced a new upstream contractual framework in 2016. The Iran Petroleum Contract was introduced in response to deficiencies in the previous risk service contract – called the Buyback contract – and in order to attract foreign investment into the country's petroleum industry. The general terms and conditions of this type of upstream contract were approved by the Board of Ministers in 2016, based on which a 20-year contract for the development and production of Phase 11 of the South Pars gas field in the Persian Gulf was concluded in 2017 between NIOC and a consortium consisting of Total, CNPCI and Petropars as contractor. The main objective of this article is to assess the new upstream contract through a detailed examination of its regulatory aspirations and its underlying legislative presumptions.