Türkiye intends to expand gas co-op with Iran

Türkiye and Iran plan to expand cooperation in the gas sector, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Türkiye, Alparslan Bayraktar, said at the meeting with Iran's Oil Minister, Javad Owji, held as a part of his visit to Tehran, Report informs with reference to the Turkish media.

"Iran is a very important natural gas supplier for Türkiye. I hope that in the coming period we will conclude the negotiations as soon as possible that started today and will take steps to further expand our natural gas supply agreement," Bayraktar noted.

According to media reports, the purpose of the Turkish minister's visit was to discuss bilateral relations between the two countries in the fields of energy and natural resources.

In a conversation with reporters, Bayraktar pointed out that he came to Iran to implement the agreements signed in the energy sector at the 8th meeting of the Türkiye-Iran High Level Cooperation Council held in Ankara in January.

He reminded that the presidents of the two countries set a goal to increase the volume of mutual trade to $30 billion a year in the medium term: "Especially in the natural gas sector, cooperation has been established for nearly 30 years. Natural gas is extremely important for Türkiye, because we use it in industry, households, and electricity. We use it widely in production."

The minister also highlighted that the investment of the Turkish private sector in natural gas infrastructure projects in Iran was discussed at the meeting: "We will continue discussions on these projects. The energy sector is one of the most important areas of cooperation between the two countries. That's why we once again demonstrate our determination and will to continue this work."

As a part of his visit to Tehran, Bayraktar also met with the Minister of Energy of Iran, Ali Akbar Mehrabian, and discussed with him the issues of electricity trade between the two countries.