The Iranian government is planning to announce tenders for the exploration of 14 oil-and-gas blocks over the next three months, a top executive at Iran's NIOC state oil company has said.
NIOC Deputy Director Rahim Nematollahi told Reuters in Istanbul on July 10 that the tenders would be offered for joint exploration together with NIOC.
Most of the blocks are in the Zagros, Koppet Dagh, and Middle Eastern Gulf regions
Two blocks -- Parsa and Bamdad -- are in the Persian Gulf.
Last week, France's Total became the first Western company to sign a development agreement with Iran since the partial lifting of sanctions in exchange for restrictions on Iran's nuclear program.
Nematollahi said Russia's LUKoil and Denmark's Maersk have expressed interest in the projects. He added that Iran hopes BP and Russia's Gazprom will also be interested.