Tasnim � Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh in a letter to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said one of his ministry�s top priorities in the new Iranian year is to develop the oil and gas fields that the country shares with neighbors.





In his letter to Ayatollah Khamenei on Monday, Zanganeh expressed gratitude to the Leader for acclaiming the Oil Ministry�s performance in a speech made on March 21 on the occasion of the new Iranian year.

He also assured the Leader that the Oil Ministry would continue to make serious efforts to conclude new oil contracts in the new year, with the priority given to the development of joint oil and gas fields and with maximum reliance on local companies.

Zanganeh also gave an assurance that the Oil Ministry will do its utmost to avoid selling crude oil by initiating grand petrochemical projects and making major investment in that industry.

Iran shares a number of oil and gas fields with its Arab neighbors in west and southwest.

Zanganeh had announced earlier that a long-term plan has been formulated to increase the production of crude from the joint oilfields by one million barrels per day.