An official with the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) said in Tehran on Monday that 23 European and Asian companies have requested information about Iran's 17 new oil blocks.
Early this month, Iran officially offered the blocks to international petroleum companies during a two-day meeting in Vienna. Five of the blocks are offshore and the rest are onshore. Iran has opened two rooms to offer information to companies interested in participating in the tenders on the blocks.
Hoseyn Roshandel, NIOC's director of exploration, said that information rooms have been open as of February 5 to render details on exploration projects of blocks.
He told the Mehr News Agency that oil giants such as Anglo-Dutch Shell, Norway's Statoil and Hydro, and Russia's Lukoil have asked for information.
(BBC News, 19/02/2007)