Iran may become major gas exporter in five years, Fitch says

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Iran may become major gas exporter in five years, Fitch says
19:57 10.07.2015

YEREVAN, July 10. / ARKA /. Iran has the long-term potential to become one of the world's top gas producers, thanks to its 34 trillion cubic meters of natural gas reserves, or around 18% of the world's total, Fitch Ratings said in a report on July 10.

However, Fitch believes that even if international sanctions on the country are lifted, it will take at least five years to ramp up production and build the pipelines necessary to become a large gas exporter.
The higher cost and complexity of liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects means significant LNG exports would take a decade or longer to materialize, Fitch said.

It noted Iran is planning a number of gas export pipelines pending the removal of international sanctions.
One example is IGAT-9, a 35 bcm per year pipeline that Iran plans to use to send gas from South Pars to Europe via Turkey.

There are currently no transit pipelines in Turkey to deliver gas to the European markets, Fitch said. The only pipeline which is currently under construction is the 16 bcm Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), which will bring 10 bcm of Azerbaijani gas via Turkey and Greece to Italy via another yet-to-be-constructed Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP).