It has been ten years since IOGP introduced the IOGP Standards Solution—an initiative that enables experts to contribute to ISO oil and gas standards while ensuring compliance with international sanctions against embargoed countries. This solution remains as vital today as it was at its inception.
ISO is founded on the principle of inclusivity, ensuring equal participation from all countries in the development of international standards. At the same time, ISO takes compliance with sanctions seriously, to ensure alignment with applicable regulations.
In 2012, Iran became a Participating (P) member of ISO/TC 67. This raised concerns about potential violations of U.S. sanctions, prompting some participants to withdraw from technical work. As a result, progress on approximately 200 ISO/TC 67 oil and gas standards came to a halt.
To address this, IOGP, as a Category A Liaison Member to ISO/TC 67, developed a “Framework Process for Compliance with Export Control Regulations and International Trade Sanctions in IOGP Standardization Work Groups.” After thorough legal review, this framework was adopted as the IOGP Standards Solution for ISO/TC 67.
Under this model, ISO provides IOGP with the latest published version of the relevant standard. Technical experts then collaborate under the IOGP Standards Committee to develop the content, with all documents securely hosted on an IOGP platform. Once the draft is finalized and publicly available, it is submitted to ISO for review and ballot by all member countries.
Over the past decade, the IOGP Standards Solution has played a crucial role in enabling the continued development of global standards while ensuring compliance with sanctions. Since its conception, the programme has delivered over 100 global standards and continues to support industry with a work portfolio of 70 documents. Both the industry and ISO/TC 67 extend their sincere appreciation to IOGP for its unwavering support in advancing effective and inclusive international standards.
