Turkmenistan: New Pipeline to Start Pumping Gas to Iran on December 20

Turkmen gas exports to Iran via a new pipeline are slated to begin on December 20. According to Iranian news sources, northern Iran will receive gas supplies originally earmarked for purchase by the Russian energy giant Gazprom.

"The decision to turn the gas flow south was taken in April 2009 after Gazprom halted gas imports from Turkmenistan because of the gas pipeline explosion the CAC-4 [pipeline] on the border with Uzbekistan," news site Iran.ru reported on October 22. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

The new export pipeline will carry fuel from the Dovletabat gas field to Iran. Iranian officials say consumers could need up to 20 billion cubic meters of Turkmen gas a year. "The two sides made considerable efforts to ensure that gas from Turkmenistan, using the new pipeline, could flow to Iran before winter," Reza Kasaeizadeh, the managing director of National Iranian Gas Export Company, is quoted as saying.