TEHRAN, Sept. 14 (MNA) – Iran is prepared to cooperate with Switzerland in oil and gas industries, voiced the acting petroleum minister here on Friday.

Gholamhossein Nozari made the statement in a meet with the Swiss head of the Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy, and Communications.
Referring to Iran’s capacities and potentials in the sectors, he added that the country owns 16 percent of world’s gas reserves.
Elaborating on fruitful negotiations between Iran and the Swiss company EGL, the top official said that talks will boost the sides’ cooperation in the two fields.
Accentuating Switzerland’s desperate need in Iran’s energy, Moritz Leuenberger expressed hope bilateral cooperation will meet it in the near future.
Nozari shifted to the inalienable right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes within the framework of rules and regulations of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and said the report of the IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei proved Iran’s nuclear activities peaceful.
Leuenberger also underlined that all countries reserved the right to do research and to use nuclear energy for peaceful objectives, ruling out any limitations in this field.
Europe has been in touch with Ankara over Turkey’s agreement with Tehran to supply gas from Iran’s South Pars, the world’s biggest gas field.
Three European energy firms RWE, Gaz de France, and EGL have shown interest in buying gas from the Iranian field that Turkish companies partly plan to develop, according to dispatches.
Much to Washington’s dismay, European firms are attracted by Iran’s energy potentials as a secure source for their long-term energy needs especially when they seek to diversify their imported energy.
The Turkish government, last month, signed a preliminary deal to transit gas from Turkmenistan and Iran to Europe via its territories.
In the meantime, Turkish companies have been given the right to develop a section of Iran’s South Pars gas field for transporting its gas to Europe.
“Companies from Germany, France and Switzerland are interested in the gas that Turkey will take from Iran and they want to buy it. They have contacted Turkey on this issue,” said the Turkish ministry official.
Turkey has agreed to invest $3.5 billion in Iran’s gas fields starting in 2008, according to Turkish Energy Ministry officials.
Last month, Turkey signed a preliminary deal to use Iran as a transit route for Turkmen gas. The deal would also allow the European Union-applicant country to develop Iran’s South Pars gas field to transport gas to Europe.
The deal envisages export of 30 bcm of gas from Iran and Turkmenistan a year to European markets.
A Gaz de France spokesman said he was not aware of any Turkey connection. He said the company was looking separately at the South Pars gas field.
“We are looking at (South Pars) project together with Total and could become involved if it goes ahead,” a GDF spokesman said. “The aspect we would like to be involved in ... concerns only LNG.”