Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 8
By Fatih Karimov- Trend:
Iran and Oman will sign the long-awaited gas deal in the near future, Ali bin Abdullah al Riyami, an official with Oman's oil and gas ministry said.
Riyami, who is director-general of Oil and Gas Marketing in the ministry, said that the two countries have been negotiating on the issue for several years and there are various grounds for mutual cooperation, ISNA news agency reported Dec. 8.
While commenting on possibility of exporting the Islamic republic's natural gas to global markets after liquefying at Oman's LNG plants, the official said it is too early to talk details.
First, both sides should reach an agreement on some issues, however there is no limit for Iran-Oman gas cooperation, Riyami said.
Tehran and Muscat are currently discussing to finalize a deal to export Iran's gas to Oman through a pipeline from the Iranian Jask Port.
Iran will open a 48-inch diameter branch pipeline from its seventh cross-country pipeline to deliver gas to Oman.
During a 23 November meeting, Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh and his Omani counterpart, Mohammed Hamad al-Rumhi, discussed exporting the Islamic republic's natural gas to global markets after liquefying at Oman's LNG plants.
Iran has already signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with Oman to deliver 10 billion cubic meters per annum (mcm/a) of gas through an underwater pipeline to that country.
The onshore part stretches from Iran's city of Rudan for 200 kilometers to Kuhmobarak and the project is planned to be commenced in 2016-2017.