TEHRAN – Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji has said the country is going to enhance energy ties with friendly nations such as Russia and China amid the U.S. sanctions, Shana reported.

The minister made the remarks in an interview with Japan’s NHK in Tokyo on Sunday.

Oji who visited Japan to attend the Asia Green Growth Partnership Ministerial (AGGPM) meeting and also the state funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, told NHK that Iran is working to attract investment from overseas without waiting for the nuclear deal to be restored.

He said Iran can currently produce four million barrels of crude oil per day and the country has been able to increase oil exports to some countries.

Oji added that the Islamic Republic also signed a memorandum of understanding with Russia's state energy giant Gazprom in July for cooperation in the oil and gas industry.

World should support oil-producing countries

On Monday, the Iranian oil minister attended the AGGPM meeting in which he called on the world to support developing oil-producing countries in their efforts for energy transition and moving towards using more clean fuels.

“If the current aggressive approach towards oil producing countries (including Iran and Venezuela) continues and the world does not pay attention to the interests of fossil fuel producers in their energy transition process, it will undoubtedly face a crisis of energy supply in the next decade,” Oji said in the meeting.

“Understanding the global needs related to reducing carbon emissions, many countries, including energy suppliers have taken policies to diversify their energy portfolio and reduce carbon emissions in production processes, during the past few years, But the success of these programs depends on active global participation, especially in the field of investment and technology,” he stressed.

The prerequisite for this action is the acceptance of a fair and evolutional energy transition instead of aggressive policies to eliminate fossil fuels from the global energy portfolio, the official added.

According to Oji, contrary to the expected trend in the process of energy transition and the reduction of the share of fossil fuels, the forecasts show that renewable energies will not be able to meet the growing need for global energy, not only in the current condition but also in the coming decades.

Fossil fuels’ consumption, especially natural gas, will experience a growing trend in the next decade, he said.

EF/MA

Photo: Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji (3rd R) addresses AGGPM meeting in Tokyo on Monday.