Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 29/ Trend M. Moezzi
Iran will be able to store 110 million cubic meters of gas daily, when it completes several storage projects.
The first phase of a project, designed to store gas underground in the Qom region's Sarajeh area, is operational, the Natural Gas Storage Company's (NGSC) Managing Director, Massoud Samivand, told Mehr news agency.
Work on Kashan's Nasrabad underground storage facility and Khorasan Province's Shourijeh facility will also be launched, Mr. Samivand said. Upon completion of 5-6 projects, Iran's gas storage capacity will grow to 110 million cubic meters, making it possible for the country to have a greater share in global gas sales.
Sarajeh, which is the first natural gas storage project in Iran and the Middle East, is going to be launched in a short run. The facility will have the capacity to store 1.2 billion cubic meters of gas in its first phase and 3.3 billion cubic meters in its second phase.
More than $200 billion (USD) is needed to invest in exploitation of Iran's gas projects. Greater stability in Iran's exports and a sustained supply of gas in the winter are two major outcomes of the storage facilities.