TEHRAN – Iranian Petroleum Minister Gholamhossein Nozari and Russian Energy Minister Sergey Ivanovich Shmatko signed a memorandum of understanding on Sunday to boost energy cooperation.

The agreement was reached on the sidelines of the 152nd meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in Vienna.
According to the MOU, the sides will promote cooperation on the exploration and development of oil and gas fields. Setting up a joint company to work on energy projects in Iran, Russia, and other countries was also included in the MOU.
The meeting came two weeks after the Russian official met his Iranian counterpart in Tehran and proposed the Iranian crude oil sale on St. Petersburg’s stock market as a step toward finding alternative markets for oil products.
The issue of gas swap between the two countries was one of the most important items in the agreement for which the two sides are negotiating to come to terms.
The transit of Russian crude oil via the Neka-Jask pipeline, from the northern port of Neka in the Caspian Sea to the southern port of Jask in Gulf of Oman was also reviewed in the meeting.
Iran ranks among the world’s top three holders of both proven oil and natural gas reserves. Iran is OPEC’s second-largest producer and exporter after Saudi Arabia, and is the fourth-largest exporter of crude oil globally after Saudi Arabia, Russia, and Norway.