TEHRAN – An Iranian legislator on Monday called on the administration to attach importance to upgrading the current level of gas swap with Russia to utilize the available capacity of around 15 billion cubic meters.
Hadi Beiginejad said thatat the Islamic Republic’s role in terms of the gas market should be based on transit and swap of energy in order to amend the existing imbalances via economical and rational methods of a swap deal.
The gas swap deals with neighboring states, including Russia, Turkmenistan, and the Republic of Azerbaijan can be profitable for the Islamic Republic of Iran, the lawmaker said, noting that the oil minister of the Raisi administration is pursuing energy diplomacy to protect Iran’s national interests; meanwhile, efforts were made by former administrations to turn the country into the hub of energy in the region.
Iran can transfer gas into the country and then export it to other states, for instance, Iran cannot import gas directly from Turkey but can import the energy from Turkmenistan and the Republic of Azerbaijan to redress the imbalance, he added.
So, Turkmenistan supplied gas demands in the northern provinces of Iran; therefore, the Islamic Republic did not transfer gas from southern areas to the north, he argued.
The Oil Ministry of the administration of President Ebrahim Raisi succeeded in having a remarkable breakthrough last winter, Beiginejad said, adding that the ministry has conducted significant efforts in the oil and gas sectors, including using a refinery in Venezuela.