Iraq, Oman to buy Iran gas

Exporting gas to Persian Gulf states along with Iraq, Oman and Afghanistan is atop the agenda of the National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) according to its Managing Director Alireza Kameli.

The vast distance and the cheap price together haul any plan to export gas to Europe down the list while the regional market in need of Iran’s gas is a fit priority for NIGEC according to Kameli.

The official reassured that the Iranian side of the Iran-Iraq gas line was 99 percent complete and the project depended on Iraq’s domestic security.

Also to take advantage of the gas refineries of Oman, as Kameli said, the gas pipeline between Iran and Oman was under study and in addition to exporting gas to Oman the two countries would form a trilateral consortium including Iran, Oman and an Iranian commissioner to produce and export LNG.

Liquefied fuel projects on the Iranian territory include the Persian LNG with an annual capacity to produce 16.2 million tons of gas. The project had been awarded to Shell and Repsol but they abandoned it in 2010.

Total had won another project - the Pars LNG with a capacity of 10 million tons - but the company pulled out of it as well. Iran, however, is carrying on with the construction of Iran LNG, a $3.3 billion project to produce 10.5 million tons of liquefied gas per year, after dropping a Chinese partner. 

Kameli said the project was underway with 50% physical progress. “We are waiting for the removal of sanctions in order to import necessary equipment and structures for the project.”

Preliminary talks are also being held with the 'world’s biggest LNG company' to build a floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) plant, the official said.

“We are expecting to swiftly begin the studies and execution of this project after the sanctions are lifted and tap its capacity within 2.5-3 years when the country’s gas production peaks,” Kameli said.

According to the official, LNG constitutes 31% of the world’s gas trade, with 70% of it going to Asia and the Middle East. There are currently 60 LNG import terminals in Asia, with plans to build 40 more. “This means the world, especially Asia, is preparing to meet a large part of its fuel needs from LNG and naturally Iran should prepare itself for this growth in demand,” Kameli said.