Iran Unveils Plan to Issue $6bn Worth of Oil Bonds

By Staff, Agencies

Iran’s Oil Ministry has unveiled a plan to issue some $6 billion worth of oil bonds in a first such move in the history of the country which would allow supply of oil to domestic customers.

The plan to issue Certificate of Deposit of Crude Oil and Condensates was unveiled on Sunday in a ceremony attended by Oil Minister Javad Owji and other senior officials in the Iranian capital Tehran.

CEO of National Iranian Oil Company [NIOC] Mohsen Khojasteh Mehr said the state-run firm will offer bonds for two shipments of 36 million barrels of oil and condensates per year in the local energy exchange market.

“The physical supply of crude oil to domestic customers has become possible for a first time in the history of Iran’s oil industry,” said Khojasteh Mehr.

He said the NIOC and Iran’s finance ministry have worked for nearly a year on the joint project to issue certificates of deposit for crude oil.

A report by the official IRNA news agency said companies and legal entities can purchase a minimum amount of 1,000 barrels of oil through the newly-unveiled bonds, adding that buyers will have the option to receive physical oil or to sell their bonds in the secondary stock market in Iran.

The report said a second phase of the plan will allow individuals to buy oil bonds through stock market brokers.