Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh is scheduled to arrive in Muscat at the head of an Iranian delegation on Thursday to discuss economic and energy cooperation with the Persian Gulf Arab country.
The one-day visit marks the first foreign trip of Iran's oil minister after the sanctions against the country were lifted on Saturday.
The two sides are expected to continue talks over a host of energy projects, including gas export to Sultanate of Oman, a deal which has yet to materialize after a decade of negotiations and speculations, Shana reported.
A preliminary agreement was signed in early 2014 to supply 28 million cubic meters per day of natural gas to Oman through an underwater pipeline that is estimated to cost $1 billion to be laid.
The tiny Arab country wants Iran's gas to meet the demand of its 3.6 million population, while a portion of supplies is planned to be used as feedstock to produce liquefied natural gas.
According to the latest developments concerning Tehran and Muscat's gas deal, a 48-inch pipeline will be laid up from Jask Port in southern Iran to deliver gas to Oman in the Arabian Peninsula.
Iran is counting on gas supplies to Oman, as it is planning to raise gas production capacity by 1.2 billion cubic meters per day by 2020 from 420 mcm/d at present. It exports natural gas via pipelines to three neighboring countries, namely Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan.
