Eurasia Press & News
TEHRAN (FNA)- A delegation of Iranian Oil Ministry officials and experts is due to visit Ashgabat to discuss and reach an agreement over the price of Turkmen gas supplies to Iran in 2009.
Northern Iran, which is far from the national grid, meets a major part of its needs through an inter-state gas pipeline put into operation in 1995 from Korpej field in Turkmenistan to the city of Kord-Kuy in Iran.
Iran imports 25mln cu.m of natural gas from Turkmenistan per day. Ashgabat suspended gas exports to Iran last winter, citing technical problems. But Iranian officials said that Ashgabat intended to pressurize Iran into increasing the price.
The stop of Turkmen gas supplies to Iran played a domino effect as Iran was consequently made to cease exports to Turkey, and Ankara was obliged to reduce exports to Greece and Europe.