French oil major Total's Iran gas deal in limbo after Trump dumps nuke deal

U.S. President Donald Trump's decision on Tuesday to pull out of the Iran nuclear accord and reinstate tough economic sanctions could scupper French oil major Total's multibillion-dollar gas project in the country unless it can secure a waiver.

Total signed a deal with Tehran in July 2017 to develop phase 11 of Iran's South Pars field with an initial investment of $1 billion, marking the first major Western energy investment in the Islamic Republic since the lifting of sanctions.

However, Trump described the nuclear agreement that made such an investment possible as "horribly one-sided" and said Iran had used proceeds from the lifting of sanctions in 2015 to "build nuclear-capable missiles, support terrorism and cause havoc across the Middle East and beyond".

He said he would be instituting the highest level of economic sanctions against Tehran, raising questions over the viability of investments made in Iran by foreign companies with a U.S. footprint.