Iran may rank 1st in world in terms of gas reserves

Oil Minister Rsotam Qasemi said here on Sunday that Iran may rank first in the world in terms of gas reserves following the discovery of gas reserves in the Caspian Sea. Addressing a news conference, he added that earlier Iran’s share of gas reserves in the sea stood at 11 trillion cubic feet. This is while the reservoir may contain gas several times this figure. On the country’s oil swap, he also said that currently the amount of oil swap is not significant and stands at 25,000 to 30,000 barrels per day. Underlining the involvement of private sector in oil swap, Qasemi also said that the figure will hit 400,000 to 500,000 per day with the presence of the private sector. Describing the oil market situation as balanced, he also said that Iran will consider fair prices and market situation in the upcoming OPEC summit slated for December 14. As to the sanctions on Iran’s oil, the minister said that Iran is one of the main oil producing countries in the world which if stops production, it will disturb balance in the oil market. Currently, Iran exports 18 percent of its oil to European countries. If they embargo Iranian crude oil, it will leave no impact on the country’s economy, he said. Qasemi declared earlier that a reservoir containing an estimated amount of 50 trillion cubic feet of gas was discovered in the Caspian Sea. He added that the reservoir located 700 meters deep in the sea bottom is close to the borderline waters.