By John Donovan
According to an Iranian news agency report, Iran is seeking to exploit the rivalry between oil giants Shell, Total, Japan’s Inpex Corporation and the Malaysian state-owned Petronas, all vying to develop Iran’s largest oil field, Azadegan oilfield.
Iran is apparently intent on driving the rivals into the formation of a consortium with the “mandatory” inclusion of an Iranian firm.
A move that would certainly provide the most convenient opportunity for Iranian intelligence to embed agents to monitor the activities of the consortium.