Iran, Iraq to discuss natural gas transference to Europe

Iraqi Ambassador to Iran Mohammad Majeed al-Sheikh said Tuesday Tehran and Baghdad are set to discuss transferring Iran’s natural gas to Europe via Iraq and Syria, the local Press TV reported.

Mohammad Majeed al-Sheikh said that the two sides will discuss the issue during a visit by Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad- Reza Rahimi to Iraq, said the report.

Rahimi is scheduled to travel to Baghdad on Wednesday heading a delegation of senior Iranian officials.

The gas deal would allow Baghdad to use Iran’s natural gas supplies, the ambassador was quoted as saying.

He added that the two sides are expected to sign 10 Memoranda of Understanding in economic, financial, cultural and customs sectors in the upcoming meeting, according to the report.

The two countries’ trade volume was expected to reach six billion U.S. dollars by the end of the year, he said.

In May, Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Javad Oji said Iran, Iraq and Syria will sign an agreement on the construction of a pipeline to transfer Iran’s natural gas to Europe.

Oji said that the primary agreement on the project was reached in Baghdad and in the future the official agreement will be signed by the oil ministers of the three countries.

Under the deal, natural gas produced in Iran’s South Pars oil and gas field will be pumped through Iran, Iraq and Syria to Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea before reaching Europe, he said.

The construction of the 5,600 km pipeline is estimated to cost five to six billion dollars, he added.

Oji said the pipeline would ultimately have the capacity to pump 110 million cubic meters of natural gas per day.

Iran has the world’s second largest gas reserves after Russia but has struggled for years to develop its oil and gas resources.

People Daily