But will Ashgabat be able to implement this project without taking the Iranian route?
Will Iran allow the use of its territory in transit, or will this agreement be concluded through a tripartite agreement, i.e. Iraq-Turkmenistan plus Iran?
In an interview with ILNA, Firouz Dolatabadi spoke about the possibility of implementing the gas export project from Turkmenistan to Iraq other than through Iran: the fact is that Turkmenistan has not of gas export route to Iraq other than Iran, now all the lines are available in Iran and Turkmenistan can deliver its gas to Iraq from the point where we ourselves send gas to Iraq.
That is, there is no technical limitation, and the question of how much transfer fee Iran will charge and how much volume it will allow to pass, and whether it will allow a competitor to enter the Iraqi market for export and whether the export license will be issued. , must be investigated.
He clarified: Regardless, we evaluate this decision in the current situation, which means that Iran is in a situation where domestic gas production is not sufficient for domestic consumption, and even in critical situations, it stops exporting to Iraq, Turkey and Armenia. In this situation, it is natural to allow the transfer of Turkmen gas from Iran.
But it makes more sense for Iran to buy gas from Turkmenistan and export it to Iraq itself, so that in the future these countries have no incentive to use the Iranian transit route, because of anyway, we are investing in gas fields in the near future. In order to increase gas production capacity, it therefore makes sense for Iran to be the buyer of Turkmen gas and the seller itself.
The former Iranian ambassador to Turkey, recalling that Iraq does not have the possibility and conditions to receive a large volume of gas other than through the gas pipeline and the LNG route, said: the only route that stay for Iraq; The route is Iran and technically there is no problem.
But the condition is that Iran buys the gas, consumes it in the northern and northeastern regions of the country and sells it to Iraq from its reserves, and in this way Iran does not have not bear the high cost of transferring gas from the south to Iraq. the north, while Iraq and Turkmenistan will also benefit from this issue, and in fact, all three countries will play a winning role.
But at the same time, this point also needs to be taken into account: maybe we want to allow transit because of our relations with Iraq, in this case both countries of Turkmenistan and Iraq should comply with the Tehran-Baghdad contractual framework in terms of prices and delivery rates, and in fact, a tripartite decision should be made between Iran, Iraq and Turkmenistan.
He stressed that the most important decision is for Iran to review and restore its agreement with Iraq and that it is not necessary for Iraq to come to an agreement with Turkmenistan, Iran can buy more gas to Turkmenistan and supply Iraq from its own gas reserves.
He added: Today, Iran's gas reserves are low and we face an energy imbalance.
We can take advantage of the opportunity of Turkmenistan and Iraq's gas programs, that is, buy Turkmen gas and sell it to Iraq, without allowing our contract with Iraq to be interrupted, nor that our destination country and its market are looking for a sustainable solution. In fact, as an exporting country, we should have a B&C plan, that is, if we run out of gas, we should think about meeting the needs of our customers and our own market.