Turkmen gas swap via Iran to Azerbaijan faces temporary suspension

The National Iranian Gas Company reported that the swap of Turkmen gas through Iran to Azerbaijan has been temporarily suspended, Azernews reports.

It was noted that Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan are currently negotiating the resumption of gas swaps.

We would like to add that on November 28, 2021, in Turkmenistan's capital, Ashgabat, an agreement on the swap of Turkmen gas to Azerbaijan via Iran was signed. According to the contract, 1.5-2 bln m³ of gas will be swapped per year. Implementation of the contract started on January 1, 2022.

Last Iranian year (March 21, 2022–March 20, 2023), an average of 4.5 mln m³ of Turkmen gas per day was pumped to Azerbaijan via Iran.

According to the Iranian side, the gas swap increased to 10 mln m³ per day from March 21 to August 2023.

It should be noted that Turkmen gas is imported to Iran in the northeast of Iran, while in the northwest, this volume of gas is transferred to Azerbaijan. Iran tries to make up for gas shortages in the north and northeast of the country through gas swaps, mainly in the winter.