By Diyar Guldogan and Huseyin Erdogan
ISTANBUL (AA) - Iran will sign 25 energy deals worth $8 to $10 billion within a year, Deputy Minister of Iran's Petroleum for Trade and International Affairs, Amir Hossein Zamaninia, said on Wednesday at the World Petroleum Congress in Istanbul.
"There are 25 negotiations that are ongoing in parallel, one of them is Total. There are many projects that are running to between $8 and $10 billion. Within the next 10-11 months, you will see many of them coming up," Zamaninia said.
Zamaninia's remarks came on the sidelines of the Congress, the largest meeting of the oil and gas industry in Istanbul, of which Anadolu Agency is the global communication partner.
The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and French national energy company, Total, signed a contract on July 3 for the development and production of Phase 11 of the South Pars field (SP11).
Global access to energy still remains a problem in which billions of people are affected, Zamaninia said.
He said awareness of this problem is growing within the oil industry, but sustainable development is needed to overcome this issue.
Zamaninia said Iran is a country that has the "greatest" gas reserves located in close proximity to India and China, where energy demand is high.
"Iran must have a great and important role in the future energy market, particularly in the gas market," he added.
He concluded that Tehran plans to increase its oil production by about four million barrels per day.