Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 22
By Fatih Karimov – Trend:
Iranian MPs permitted the country's oil ministry to export surplus gas to Europe and neighbouring countries in the next fiscal year, which will start March 2017.
The approval is a part of the next fiscal year’s budget bill which is under study in the parliament, Iran’s IRNA news agency reported Feb. 22.
According to the bill, the Iranian oil ministry should take steps to export gas to the EU and neighbouring countries-which are not buying oil from Iran- using the private sector potential, if the gas output surpasses 1000 million cubic meters per day.
Iran’s gross gas output currently stands at 820 million cubic meters per day. Meanwhile the country’s commercial gas output reaches 700 million cubic meters per day.
The Iranian parliament approved general outlines of the national budget bill for the next Iranian fiscal year on Feb. 21.
The draft budget bill has put the price of a barrel of oil at $50 for the next fiscal year.
In the meantime, 20 percent of the country’s oil revenue will go to the National Development Fund.
The draft has predicted that Iran’s revenue from oil exports would stand at 1,100 trillion rials (about $33.3 billion according to USD rate against Iranian national currency envisaged by the draft bill).