Iran planning to boost gas swaps in region

TEHRAN, Dec. 11(MNA)--Swapping gas can establish a strategic link among major gas producers. So, Iran is seriously following for gas swap projects in the region, the National Iranian Gas Exports Company’s managing director stated. Iran is currently studying on a number of routes such as Turkmenistan-Persian Gulf and Turkmenistan-Pakistan for swapping natural gas, Hossein Bidarmaghz told. “We are also swapping gas with Azerbaijan and transfer its gas to Nakhichevan,” the official added. In 2005, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad opened a gas pipeline from Iran to Azerbaijan's Nakhichevan Autonomous Region. Currently Iran imports 1 million cubic meters of gas from Azerbaijan, delivering it to the Nakhchivan Republic under a 25-year swap deal. Earlier in September, Bidarmaghz said that Iran had reached agreements with India and Oman on exporting gas to the two countries. Bidarmaghz said based on a trilateral agreement among Iran, Oman and a third country, Iran's gas would feed Oman's liquefaction plant before being processed into various products in a third country. Iran ranks second in the world in natural gas resources after Russia with available gas reserves estimated at over 33 trillion cubic meters.