Baku, Azerbaijan, March 23
By Emil Ilgar - Trend:
Iranian president Hassan Rouhani is preparing to visit Pakistan in coming days, IRNA reported on March 22.
According to the report, the major agenda at Rouhani's visit to Islamabad is negotiation over Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline as well as boosting power export to this country.
Before, Pakistani Express Tribune reported that two months after visiting Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Tehran in January, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is preparing to kick off a visit to Islamabad on March 25-26.
The schedule of Rouhani's two-day trip was disclosed during a meeting between Pakistani Water and Power Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif and Iranian Ambassador to Islamabad Mehdi Honardoost on March 9.
IRNA reported that the economic ministers of Rouhani's cabinet will accompany him in Pakistan visit.
The Deputy Energy Minister Houshang Falahatian told IRNA on March 22 that exporting 3000 megawatts(MW) of power to Pakistan is possible.
Falahatian didn't reveal how much kilowatt-hour (kWh) of Iranian electricity would be exported to Pakistan, however, Pakistan has about 4 percent share in Iran's 10-billion kWh electricity energy export, Iran Energy Ministry's annual report says.
A few weeks ago Pakistan lifted sanctions against Iran, shortly after international sanctions on Iran were lifted according to the country's nuclear deal with world powers.
Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project (also called Peace Pipeline) is also expected to discussed between two sides.
Pakistan should have intake Iranian gas since the beginning of 2015, but it hasn't started the construction of pipeline in its territory yet.
According to agreement, Iran would export 22 million cubic meters per day of gas to Pakistan The pipeline can carry 110 million cubic meters of gas a day.