Azerbaijan, Iran Sign Natural Gas Agreement
Source: RFE/RLBAKU -- Baku and Tehran have signed a five-year agreement on the supply of Azerbaijani natural gas to Iran, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports.
The agreement was signed today by representatives of Azerbaijan's State Oil Company (SOCAR) and Iran's National Gas Export Company (NIGEC) with the participation of Iran's visiting Oil Minister and current OPEC Chairman Seyid Masud Mirkazemi.
SOCAR spokesperson Nizameddin Quliyev told RFE/RL the
agreement envisages the export of 1 billion cubic meters of gas to Iran during
2011, beginning February 1. He said the volume of gas in subsequent years is
subject to negotiation.
Quliyev did not disclose the price for the exported gas, saying only that it was
a world market price "acceptable for Azerbaijan."
Azer Mansimli, spokesman for the Ministry of Industry and Energy, told RFE/RL
today that Azerbaijan and Iran may also establish an energy bank for
implementing and financing joint oil and gas projects. The proposal was
discussed in a meeting between Mirkazemi and Azerbaijan's Industry and Energy
Minister Natiq Aliyev.
In February 2008, Iran received 30 million cubic meters of gas from Azerbaijan
on the basis of a short-term commercial contract. At the time, the price was
$292 per 1,000 cubic meters of gas.
Copyright (c) 2011 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org
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