Mehr News Agency reported that Iran’s gas exports to Armenia were temporarily interrupted due to an explosion which took place in the Armenian section of the conveyance pipeline.
The Armenian officials informed Iran that an explosion has occurred at some segment of the Iran and Armenia pipeline which lies inside Armenian border.
The report said that Iran will resume gas export to Armenia as soon as the Armenians repair the pipeline. Iran started the exportation of natural gas to Armenia in May.
According to the deal signed in May 2004, Armenia will pay for the gas with electricity it produces at a Soviet era nuclear power plant. Based on the agreement, Iran is supposed to transfer 3 million cubic meters of gas per day to Armenia by the end of 2010 and from the beginning of 2011 raise this volume up to 4 million cubic meters per day. The volume of gas exports could gradually rise to 6.3 million cubic meters per day.
In exchange, Armenia will transfer 3 kilowatt per hours of electricity for each cubic meter of the Iranian gas.
The Iran to Armenia pipeline has a diameter of 30 inches and runs for 113 kilometers from Tabriz, East Azerbaijan Province to the Iran to Armenia border. The 2 countries had originally agreed to finalize the project in January 2007 but the Armenians later said that they were not ready.
(Sourced from Mehr News Agency)
