The Times, July 11, 2008 (excerpts)- Tehran faced deeper isolation yesterday after a major Western energy company withdrew from a giant Iranian gas field project and international threats to attack the country’s nuclear facilities grew.
Total, the French energy group, said that it was freezing its role in a $10 billion project to develop the South Pars fields in the Gulf, the world’s largest gas reserves. The decision was a big step in a US campaign to put pressure on Iran to stop enriching uranium.
Washington has put pressure on the French group after Shell and Repsol, the Spanish company, withdrew from other Iranian projects this year.
Tehran needs technology that only the Western groups possess in order to extract and liquefy gas from the field. It could turn to Gazprom but the Russian energy giant lacks the necessary expertise, industry experts said.
Total had been hoping to continue with South Pars, which has been in suspension since 2006, but it bowed to pressure from Washington and from President Sarkozy, a strong supporter of the drive to force Tehran to stop enriching uranium. Total was not given an order but it was told further involvement in Iran would be unwelcome.