A comparative study of the process of concluding concession contracts in the Iranian oil industry with other legal systems (Roman-Germanic - Common Law); with emphasis on the ownership system that governs it

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 PhD student of Public Law, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of Public Law, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran

Abstract

Iran, as the first country in the Middle East, attempted to conclude concession contracts, but after the attacks from critics of concession contracts and popular demands and after the approval of the 1957 Oil Law, like other legal systems in the world, did not take steps to update its concession contracts in the oil industry. However, with a brief review of other legal systems, we witness the conclusion of a modern generation of concession contracts in France, license contracts in Britain and lease contracts in the United States of America, all of which are considered to be among the new generation of concession contracts. France, as a developed country and representative of the Romano-German legal system, took steps to update its oil concession contracts from the perspective of the nature of the "administrative contract", while the United Kingdom and the United States, as countries with oil resources and development, have taken the initiative of license and lease contracts as new generation concession contracts, considering the standards of the common law legal system. In this article, we have tried to use the method of systematic review studies (Systematic Review), and with regard to all the articles related to the subject selected from different databases, to reach the conclusion that, while stating the benefits and types of new generation concession contracts, we can also list the reasons for the tendency of countries with hydrocarbon resources to new generation concession contracts. Although these contracts do not mention the ownership of the concession holder over the reservoir and the ownership of the government over the field has changed, the events after World War II caused a transition from traditional concession contracts to modern concession contracts;

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

Ameri, Faisal and Shirmardi Dezki, Mohammad Reza, 2014, “New Concession Contracts and the Interests of Oil Producing Countries: An Analysis of Oil Ownership, Host State Supervision and Management and Contract Financial Regime”, Private Law Research, Year 2, Issue 6 (In Persian).
Amani, Masoud and Esmaili, Mohsen, 2011, "Comparative Study of Oil and Gas Ownership in National Systems and International Law", Comparative Law (Nameh Mofid), Volume 8, Issue 1, (In Persian).
Aminzadeh, Elham and Nikbakhsh Sharafshadeh, Ali, 2015, “A Comparative Study of the Right of States to Own and Sovereignty of Oil and Gas Resources”, Energy Law Studies, Volume 1, Issue 1, pp. 1-16. (In Persian).
Cameron. Peter, 1983. property rights and sovereign rights: the case of North Sea oil, New York, Academic Press Inc.
Daintith. Terence, THE Legal Character of Petroleum Licenses: A Comparative Study 223 (University of Dundee, Centre for Petroleum and Mineral Law Studies 1981).
Gordon, G. W., & Paterson, J. B. 2015. Licensing the Exploration for and Production of Petroleum on the UK Continental Shelf. In T. Hunter (Ed.), Regulation of The Upstream Petroleum Sector: A Comparative Study of Licensing and Concession Systems (pp. 107-132). Edward Elgar Publishing Limited.
 
Hunter, T. 2015. Comparison of access to petroleum in developed and developing licensing and concession systems. In T. Hunter (Ed.), Regulation of the upstream petroleum sector: a comparative study of licensing and concession systems. (New Horizons in Environmental and Energy Law). Edward Elgar.
Hunter, T. 2015. Licensing and concession system for developing Australia's conventional petroleum resources. In T. Hunter (Ed.), Regulation of the upstream petroleum sector: a comparative study of licensing and concession systems (pp. 61-106). (New Horizons in Environmental and Energy Law).  Edward Elgar.
Kazemi Najafabadi, Abbas, 2017, “Oil Ownership in International Oil Contracts from a Private Law Perspective”, Private Law Research Quarterly, Issue 18, (In Persian).
Kashani, Seyed Sadeq, 2010, "Development of Oil and Gas Fields: Structures and Approaches to Project Implementation", Tehran, Research Center of the Islamic Consultative Assembly. (In Persian).
Lowe. John S., 2014. Oil and Gas Law in a Nutshell, West Academic, 6th ed.
Lowe. John S., 2012. Cases and Materials on Oil and Gas Law, West Academic, 6th ed.
 
Mansouri Naraghi, Mahmoud, 2011, Oil, "Legal Principles and General Conditions of Middle East Oil Contracts", Volume 1, Tehran, Sobhe Emrooz Publications. (In Persian).
Nordtveit. Ernst, Regulation of the Norwegian Upstream Sector, in Regulation of the Upstream Petroleum Sector: A Comparative Study of Licensing and Concession Systems. (New Horizons in Environmental and Energy Law). Edward Elgar.
Pereira. Eduardo G. & Kim Talus, 2015. African Upstream Oil and Gas: A Practical Guide to the Law and Regulation, Globe Law and Business.
 
Roggenkamp. Martha M., Catherine Redgwell & Iñigo Del Guayo, 2016. Energy Law in Europe, National, EU and International Regulation, Oxford.
Rabiei, Frank, 2002, Oil Contract Law, Tehran, Behnami Publications (In Persian).
Rezaian Mehr, Mustafa, 2015, "A Study of the Characteristics of International Oil Contracts", Monthly Oil and Gas Exploration and Production, No. 122. (In Persian).
Stanescu. Catalin Gabriel, Eduardo G. Pereira, and Aarin Koenck. 2019, “Petroleum Concession, Licenses and Leases: Same-Same but Different”, LSU Journal of Energy Law and Resources, Issue 1.
 
Salari, Mustafa, 2019, The New Model of Iranian Oil Contracts from the Perspective of the Constitution, 2nd Edition, Dadgostar Publications, p. 162 (In Persian).
Shirvi, Abdul Hossein, 2014 «Oil and Gas Law», Mizan Publishing House. (In Persian).
Wigwe. Christian. 2018. A Critical Examination of the Main Provisions of Modern Concession Agreements”, Journal of Mineral Resources Law, January.
Zachariah. Hassan, 1976. New direction in the search for development of petroleum resources in the developing countries, Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law.
 

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 02 February 2025
  • Revise Date: 03 May 2025
  • Accept Date: 22 June 2025

Share

How to cite

Statistics