Contradictory Statements Regarding the Presence of a Chinese Company Instead of Total in South Pars

A senior Iranian oil ministry official has made contradictory statements regarding the development status of Phase 11 of South Pars, the future activities of the French company Total, and the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). On August 20, IRNA reported that Mohammad Mostafavi, the director of investment and business at the National Iranian Oil Company, stated that CNPC has replaced Total. However, shortly after this news, the Iranian Oil and Energy Information Network published different remarks from Mr. Mostafavi, stating that this was a 'complementary explanation.' In his follow-up comments to the Shana news agency about the development plan for Phase 11 of South Pars, he mentioned that 'the role of the members of the consortium developing this project is according to the terms of the contract, and there has not yet been an official change in the contract terms.' In this brief news piece, it was reported that 'in case of any changes in the contract terms, necessary notifications will be made,' while IRNA had reported that CNPC is currently continuing work with an 80.1% share in Phase 11 of South Pars. The development contract for South Pars is worth $4.8 billion and is set to be carried out in two phases. Last July, this contract was signed between Total (50.1% share), CNPC (30%), and Petropars Iran (19.9% share), which at that time was considered the first significant Western investment in Iran. Total had stated that it would leave the project if it did not receive a waiver from sanctions following the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA. Donald Trump announced the U.S. exit from the nuclear deal in May, with the first round of sanctions against Iran reinstated on August 15, and the second round, which specifically includes oil sanctions, to return in 90 days. South Pars is part of a gas field in the Persian Gulf located in the territorial waters of Iran and Qatar. According to the International Energy Agency's 2008 estimates, this field is the largest gas field in the world. Reports indicate that the pressure in the South Pars gas field will significantly decline over the next five years, necessitating the replacement of current platforms, which weigh between 1500 to 2000 tons, with new 20,000-ton platforms. The cost of constructing each 20,000-ton platform, including compressors, is estimated at about $2.5 billion, and it is said that the Chinese company lacks the technology to build it. Iranian officials had hoped that Total would not only construct the first new platform but also bring the technology to Iran. According to Iranian officials, at least 10 massive platforms will be needed after five years to prevent a decline in production from the field.