National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has added two private local players with no official links to its list of those qualified to partner foreign oil companies bidding for upstream projects, in what appears to be a sign of confidence under a newly-inaugurated second administration led by President Hassan Rouhani.
The state company’s initiative is seen as a significant move toward opening up the energy sector to foreign oil and gas investors in the post-sanctions period — expanding a two-year-old list of local companies mostly affiliated with potentially controversial official institutions.
