Iran in Talks with China and India on Caspian Oil and Gas
Iran is in talks with the Chinese National Petroleum Company (CNPC) and India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) concerning oil and gas development in the Caspian Sea. Though nothing has been finalized, Tehran already has a memorandum of agreement with Beijing to store strategic reserves in China. Iran currently produces oil below industry standards due to lagging technology and lack of capital. Three rounds of sanctions by the United Nations Security Council have cutoff Iran from Western, especially U.S., investment and so it has turned to Asia. Due to the burgeoning petroleum needs, fast-growing, populous Asian countries are eager to insure continued supplies for their economies.
Talk of placing strategic reserves in Africa in order to get crude oil closer to buyers has also been confirmed. It seems that while the West continues sanctions against Iran, the rest of the world is lining up to get a piece of the second largest oil-pie around.
Bridget Russell
