Attended by directors of National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) and senior directors of Oman Ministry of Petroleum in addition to representatives of France’s Total oil company, Britain’s Royal Dutch Shell and South Korea’s KOGAS, the meeting aimed to investigate venues for cooperation and partnership in the Iranian project of exporting gas to Oman.
Back in 2013, Tehran and Muscat signed into a deal under which Iran will export 1.5 million cubic feet of gas to Oman through a submarine pipeline in the Persian Gulf.
A portion of the gas is expected to be consumed by Oman while the rest will be deployed to target markets via LNG facilities of the Arab country.
The project, for holding great significance, is expected to strengthen Iran-Oman ties and energy ties in the Middle East.
Presently, relevant studies are underway to define the offshore route of the pipeline and given the UAE’s opposition on using its shallow waters, the pipeline will pass through deep water of Gulf of Oman which results in a rise in costs of the project.
Iranian companies possess the technology for installation of pipelines in shallow waters; nevertheless, given that they have never carried out the project in waters with a depth over 1,000 meters, experience of international firms will be exploited appropriately.
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