In June 25, Majid Chegeni, the Managing Director of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC), announced that Iraq has fully paid its gas debt to Iran, adding that Iraq's Ministry of Electricity has cleared all outstanding gas debts. He made this statement during discussions with reporters on the sidelines of a conference focused on upgrading natural gas production, transmission, distribution systems, and grids. Earlier, the Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber of Commerce Chairman stated that $2.7 billion of Iran's frozen assets in Iraq due to U.S. sanctions on Iran, had been released.
Regarding gas negotiations, Chegeni revealed that Iran is currently in talks with Turkey and Turkmenistan. He mentioned that Turkey had expressed interest in extending its gas import contract with Iran, and discussions between the two parties are ongoing. Furthermore, Iran and Turkmenistan are engaged in talks regarding gas imports.
Last month, Iran's Oil Minister, Javad Owji, stated that a gas contract with Turkmenistan would be signed soon, and gas imports would commence. He highlighted that the current administration has increased gas swaps with Azerbaijan, exchanging 1.5 to 2 billion cubic meters (bcm) annually. The gas swap volume doubled last year following an agreement between the two countries. Owji emphasized that Turkmenistan holds the world's fourth-largest gas reserves, and Iran can import 40 to 50 million cubic meters per day (mcm/d). He expressed the intention to enhance gas trade, including swap, transit, and transactions, for the benefit of both countries.
Mohammad Sadeq Jokar, the head of Iran's Institute for International Energy Studies (IIES), highlighted Turkmenistan's limited gas export options due to regional and international developments, including the conflict in Ukraine, adding that gas imports from Turkmenistan would help address the production-consumption imbalance in northeastern Iran.
Meanwhile, Fariborz Karimaei, deputy head of the Association of Petrochemical Industry Corporation (APIC), stated during the 32nd Meeting of Managing Directors of Petrochemical Companies that Iran had generated $61 billion in revenue from exporting 120 million tons of petrochemical products between 2018 and 2022, despite facing increasing sanctions.
He elaborated that approximately 40 million tons of petrochemicals were produced in the previous Iranian calendar year, with 28 million tons exported and 12 million tons sold domestically. The total value of annual sales amounted to $27 billion.
Comments