Iran inks offshore gas deal with France's TotalTehran, Iran--Iran signed a deal with France's Total on Tuesday to develop a major offshore gas field, its first big contract with a Western energy firm since sanctions were loosened in January. It is the first deal of its kind since most international sanctions on Iran were lifted in January under a nuclear deal with world powers. Tuesday's signing represents Total's return to Iran, which has the second-largest gas reserves and fourth-largest oil reserves in the world. Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh thanked Total and CNPC for working with Iran despite "difficult conditions." He said there would be none of the banking problems that have bedeviled recent trade deals with Iran, because Total would use its own cash.

Source: The China Post November 08, 2016 16:41 UTC