Nobakht Warns Critics of Total Contract: The People Will Settle Accounts with You

Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the spokesperson for Rouhani's government, reacted on Tuesday, July 9, to some members of parliament who labeled the gas contract with the French company Total as 'treason,' stating that these individuals are 'putting sticks in the wheels of the government' and warned that 'the people will settle accounts with those who obstruct the country's development in due time.' According to the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA), Nobakht criticized the proposal by some parliament members for an urgent plan to halt the Total contract, saying, 'This plan does not need to be prepared, and if representatives see any illegal action in the Total contract, they should submit their evidence to the judiciary.' Iran and the French company Total signed a 20-year contract on July 1 for the development of Phase 11 of the South Pars gas field, which is the first contract with a foreign company based on the new oil contract model of the Ministry of Oil under Rouhani's government, known as 'IPC.' Several officials close to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have criticized granting long-term concessions to a foreign company, describing it as a 'exploitative and colonial move by the West' and 'damaging.' Some critics of the contract have also questioned why Rouhani's government is engaging with a French company whose government allows the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization to hold meetings. Hossein Ali Hajideligani, a representative from Shahinshahr, also called Total a 'dishonorable, bribing company and traitor to the interests of the Iranian nation' in a parliamentary speech on Sunday, stating that 'some individuals who were involved in signing the contract on behalf of Iran have been convicted in courts due to corruption and signing the Karsent contract.' According to the official news agency IRNA, the government spokesperson, in response to these statements, said: 'Our suggestion to these individuals is to submit their evidence to the judiciary and not obstruct the work; our people understand and will show those who hinder the country's development in due time.' Nobakht pointed out that 'all supervisory stages have been completed for signing the Total contract,' stating: 'There is no confidential issue in this contract for representatives; they have the right to investigate this contract, and if they think any wrongdoing has occurred, they can report it to oversight bodies, including the judiciary, the Court of Audit, the Planning and Budget Organization, and the Ministry of Intelligence.' The head of the Planning and Budget Organization further added: 'To achieve 8% growth, we need investment. The parliament has mandated the government to attract $65 billion in foreign investment. Some representatives say this investment is treason; words do not have taxes. Putting sticks in the wheels of the government is a mistake. Preparing an urgent plan to stop the Total contract is unnecessary, and if representatives think any illegal action has occurred, they should submit their evidence to the judiciary.' On Tuesday, Nouraldin Shahnazizadeh, CEO of the Oil Engineering and Development Company (PETRON), also commented on some statements regarding 'the necessity of publicly releasing the text of the Phase 11 contract with Total and other contracts,' stating: 'It is not common to publish the texts of these contracts.' He emphasized: 'The relevant and supervisory bodies have had complete oversight over the approval process of the oil contract model, and there is no need to publish their texts.' Recently, Bijan Namdar Zangeneh, the oil minister of Rouhani's government, defended the new oil and gas contract model and invited critics to 'think rationally,' even stating that 'the best contract in the world' is to give ownership of an oil or gas field 'for 40 or 50 years' to a foreign company. The development of Phase 11 of the South Pars gas field requires more than $4.8 billion in investment, which, according to the latest announcement from the Ministry of Oil's public relations, 'domestic resources cannot meet this amount of funding.' According to IRNA, with the completion of this project, Iran's extraction capacity from the South Pars gas field shared with Qatar will increase by 56 million cubic meters (equivalent to 2 billion cubic feet) daily. Under this contract, an international consortium led by Total France has been established, with the international branch of the China National Petroleum Corporation and Petropars Iran as other members. Total's share as the leader of this consortium in this contract is 50.1%. The international branch of the China National Petroleum Corporation and Petropars Iran hold shares of 30% and 19.9%, respectively. This project aims to maximize and sustainably produce 2 billion cubic feet (approximately 56 million cubic meters) of sour gas from the offshore resources of Phase 11 of the shared South Pars gas field and transport it to the mainland.