An informed source told Mehr News that while Iran and Turkmenistan arrived at an agreement during last night negotiations, Turkmenistan’s officials arose new issues that would pose new challenges on Iran’s willingness to keep the gas deal in effect.
“If the two sides do not reach an agreement today, Turkmenistan will likely stop gas delivery to Iran from Saturday,” he added.
The official on the condition of anonymity said that Iran is ready to continue gas talks with Turkmenistan but has also prepared itself in the meantime to supply northern provinces with domestic production.
According to the official, Iran’s gas production will increase to one billion cubic meters per day by next year, which would practically lead to an excess capacity to export gas to neighboring countries.
The official maintained that Iran would change the arrangement of its gas pipeline network in case the gas deal falls through, adding “the Islamic Republic of Iran does not yield to ransom and threats from any country and preserving the country’s independence is the most important policy of our gas industry.”
The remarks came as Turkmenistan claims Iran has a $2 billion debt over gas import, delayed since the international sanctions were imopsed on Iran in 2012. Many experts believe that if the deal is canceled, Ashgabat will be dealt the most amount of loss as Iran is the only buyer of its gas, besides China.
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