Iran and Turkmenistan are scheduled to sign a major natural gas supply deal soon under which Turkmenistan will pump 10 million cubic meters per day (mcm/d) of gas to Iran, Iran’s Oil Minister Javad Owji said on the sidelines of a meeting with Batyr Amanov, Turkmenistan’s deputy prime minister for oil and gas affairs on Tuesday, May 30.
He pointed out that Turkmenistan sits on the world’s fourth largest gas reserves and Iran is also capable of receiving 40 to 50 mcm/d of gas and added: “Gas imports from Turkmenistan will begin within weeks.”
Owji said that Iran aims to boost its gas trade with Turkmenistan, including through swap, transit, sales and purchase agreements, adding that this could be beneficial for both countries,
He went on to say that Iran has paid some $1.65 billion to Turkmenistan to settle its energy arrears to the Central Asian country.