Iran to increase gas export capacity to Turkey and European countries

Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb.1/ Trend F.Milad‎‏ Iran is launching two gas pressure boost facilities in the cities of Bijar and Hamedan, the managing director of the Iranian Gas Engineering & Development Company said on Friday. Once the two facilities come on stream, Iran's gas transfer capacity for exporting gas to Turkey and European countries will be increased by 50 million cubic meters per day, the Mehr News Agency quoted Alireza Qaribi as saying. Iran also plans to exports gas to neighbouring Iraq. Deputy Oil Minister Javad Owji said on Wednesday that Tehran will sign the gas contract with Baghdad in the near future. Based on the contract, Iran will export a daily 25 million cubic meters of gas to Iraq in 2013, the SHAN News Agency quoted Javad Owji as saying. The country will transfer the gas to the border via the sixth nationwide gas pipeline, he said. Owji, also the managing director of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC), went on to note that Iraq will use the gas to produce electricity in two power plants. Oil ministry's spokesman, Ali Nikzad Rahbar, also said on Wednesday that Iran will start exporting gas to Iraq in the summer. Iran currently produces 550-600 million cubic meters of gas per day. The Iranian oil minister announced last month that Iran plans to sign some new gas export contracts in near future. By the end of the Fifth Five-Year Economic ‎Development Plan ‎‎(March ‎‎2016), Iran's gas production capacity would reach one billion cubic meters per day, Rostam Qasemi said.‎ ‏"‏By the end of the plan, the country will also produce 5.6 million ‎barrels of oil per day," he added.‏