The import of know-how is a top priority of the Iranian gas industry in negotiations with foreign companies, said the CEO of National Iranian Gas Company.
"Prominent local companies have made great accomplishments in equipment production because of western sanctions and the trend can be accelerated with the state-of-the-art technologies," Hamid-Reza Araqi told Shana.
Stressing that the policy of purchasing equipment for the industry rather than acquiring the expertise is a thing of the past, Araqi called for collective efforts to import and employ the world's latest technologies by gaining the trust of foreign companies.
The official also underlined the effect of regional and local circumstantial fluctuations on the price of gas and said transferring gas over a shorter distance will cost the industry less and result in a more reasonable price.
"Currently, the price of gas in the region is higher than that in Europe while it costs less to transfer," he said.
"Iran has a number of scenarios prepared to boost exports and make its mark on the international stage," he added, underscoring the rise of gas imports in the sixth five-year economic development plan (2016-21).
Araqi said natural gas exports can increase by reducing the consumption of this fossil fuel by 20%, given the optimization plans and strategic policies currently in place.
Earlier this year, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said the country faced a massive shortage of 160 million cubic meters of gas per day when he took office in mid-2013.
But the deficit was reduced after the ministry prioritized the development of South Pars phases, the country's biggest gas field, and boosted natural gas output by 120 mcm/d, following the launch of several South Pars phases by March 2015.
