Iran says it may start negotiations with global energy giant Shell over the development of Kish gas field, which holds the country’s largest reservoirs of natural gas after South Pars, Press TV reported.

The Petroleum Development and Engineering Company’s (PEDEC) Managing Director, Noureddin Shahnazizadeh, stated that Shell was already studying the field based on an agreement signed with the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) in December 2016, Iran Daily informed.

Furthermore, he explained that the NIOC could accordingly enter into development talks with Shell, which is to complete its studies over Kish by July 2017.

However, the official , whose company is a subsidiary of the NIOC and is in charge of the development of certain southern oil and gas fields, also emphasized that an Iranian company had also voiced interest in providing the funding for the development of Kish gas field.

Kish gas field is located on Iran’s Kish Island in the Persian Gulf. With a reservoir of 70tcf, the field is expected to produce about 4m barrels of condensate as well as 9bcm of natural gas once fully developed.