MANAMA, Bahrain, June 2 (UPI) -- Iran is looking to entice foreigners to bank on its refining capacity amid a shake-up at the South Pars gas field, officials said at a Bahraini oil summit.
Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Shahnazi Zadeh told delegates at the Manama oil conference that new rules governing the energy sector made for an attractive business climate, the Emirati newspaper The National reports.
"We are asking investors and joint ventures to invest in new refineries," he said.
Zadeh said incentives included tax breaks and purchase assurances from Tehran.
Iran is eager to bring foreign revenue into the country as Western countries push for tighter sanctions as punishment for a controversial nuclear program.
Iran last week, however, replaced Royal Dutch Shell and Spanish energy company Repsol with the Revolutionary Guard-owned Khatam al-Anbiya at two South Par development projects.
The foreign companies were given a deadline to commit to South Par development or face removal from the project, the semiofficial Mehr News Agency reported Friday.
Iran holds some of the largest oil and gas deposits in the world.
