Iran has the infrastructure for increasing gas import and swap with neighboring countries to 40 million cubic meters per day, or 15 billion cubic meters per year, the oil minister said.
Javad Owji made the statement after a meeting with Turkmenistan’s visiting Vice President Serdar Gurbanguliyevich Berdimuhamedow and Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov in Tehran on Saturday, ISNA reported.
Iran has started transferring 5 mcm of natural gas per day (2 bcm per year) of Turkmenistan, located to the east of the Caspian Sea, to Azerbaijan, on the western side of the sea, based on a trilateral agreement reached last November.
Owji said Iran and Turkmenistan will sign a series of new documents to further expand energy ties during the two-day trip of Meredov and his accompanying delegation to Tehran.
He said the two sides has held fruitful talks on Saturday about future gas and fuel swap deals, as well as on cooperation in technical and engineering projects in petroleum industries.
Berdimuhamedow stressed the significance of bilateral relations with Iran and said the role of Iran-Turkmenistan Economic Commission was quite important in that respect.
He said there were favorable capacities for the two countries’ broader cooperation, especially in transportation, technical and engineering services and electrical engineering, as well as oil and gas fields.
Several rounds of talks have already taken place between Iran and Turkmenistan, focusing on the development of energy cooperation.
Of the total volume of gas received from Turkmenistan, about 20% are Iran’s share as swap fee and the rest will be delivered to Azerbaijan.
Benefits of Swap Deals
Iran has major natural gas fields in the south but has imported gas from Turkmenistan since 1997 for distribution in its northern provinces, especially during the winter.
Experts believe that the implementation of the deal could encourage other countries in the region to sign similar deals and use Iran’s capacities in this regard.
Having the largest high-pressure gas pipeline network after Russia, Iran can play a key role in transferring gas from east to west of Iran and neighboring countries.
The deal is also a big step for Iran, as it would ensure a stable gas supply to the country’s northeastern regions, which are far away from the sources of natural gas in the country.
Turkmenistan has been exploring options on gas swap deals with Iran to export its fuel to markets further afield. Because of economic challenges, Turkmenistan has been seeking more buyers for its natural gas riches other than China.
However, since January 2017, Ashgabat has been embroiled in a row with Iran over allegedly unpaid gas bills.
Turkmenistan used to send nearly 6 million cubic meters of gas to Azerbaijan through Iran up until 2017 when it was brought to a temporary halt due to a row with Iran over unpaid gas bills.
The two nations managed to settle the row out of court, as officials in Tehran signaled their willingness to put aside differences with the neighboring state.
Considering the large-scale access to equipment and pipelines in the country, the Oil Ministry has made it clear that the government is keen on resuming swap operations with northern neighbors.
According to the ministry’s website, Iran is willing to start swapping oil and gas from Caspian Sea littoral states, provided Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan equally take measures and cooperate with Iran in this regard.
