Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 8
By Azad Hasanli - Trend:
In January-July 2018, Azerbaijan imported 178.5 million cubic meters of gas from Iran, the State Statistics Committee of Azerbaijan reported on Oct. 8.
Gas supplies from Iran to Azerbaijan in July amounted to 9.4 million cubic meters.
In 2017, Azerbaijan imported 494.96 million cubic meters of gas ($69.8 million) from Iran. About 270 million cubic meters of gas were supplied to Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic (NAR).
Deliveries to the NAR are carried out within a long-term (until 2025) swap agreement between Azerbaijan and Iran. Under the agreement, Azerbaijan should annually supply over 400 million cubic meters of gas to Iran, and Iran, in turn, redirects 350 million cubic meters of this gas to Nakhchivan.
In order to use the commercial potential of Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR's gas storages, during summer months Azerbaijan imports extra volumes of gas from abroad at low prices, and in winter, when prices are higher, it exports the purchased volumes, thus earning additional income.
Azerbaijan and Iran are connected by the Astara-Bind-Biand gas pipeline with a length of 1,474.5 kilometers.
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