Austrian energy group OMV has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) to evaluate oil fields in the Zagros area of western Iran.

The agreement, which also foresees cooperation in technology research and oil swaps, will assess oil fields for potential future development.

The two companies have also signed a joint study agreement for the evaluation of potential oil and gas prospects in the Fars region of southern Iran.

Johann Pleininger, the OMV board member responsible for upstream development, said the MoU includes a framework for the use of the Austrian group’s enhanced oil recovery (EOR) technology for the Cheshmeh Khosh and Band-e-Karkheh fields.

International oil companies are still awaiting the launch of the new Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC), which will set out new terms to attract investment to the Islamic Republic’s oil and gas sector. In early May, the countrys’s deputy petroleum minister said the IPC would be ready by July.

In March, OMV and US-based Occidental Petroleum signed a four-year deal to evaluate several undeveloped oil and gas fields in the North West Offshore area of Abu Dhabi.