GECF says Iran can meet EU gas needs
Mohammad Hossein Adeli, the secretary general of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), has told reporters that Iran is in a good position to meet the growing gas needs of the European Union.
"Iran and the European Union have already engaged in negotiation that involved several options for the export [of gas] to the European Union…. Of course, this does not mean that Iran intends to substitute Russia for its exports to Europe," Adeli has been quoted as saying by Sputnik news service.
He added that Russia remained the main gas supplier to Europe, but noted that Iran could partially meet the growing EU energy demands both through pipeline supplies and liquefied natural gas deliveries.
Adeli said the demand for natural gas in Europe is set to increase after 2020, with European gas imports to double by 2040.
Russia will satisfy approximately half of Europe's gas imports over the next 30 years, Adeli said.
Iran has been pursuing multiple projects for years to pipe natural gas to Europe. The most serious project was Nabucco which was pursued by an international consortium led by Austria’s OMV. Iran had been originally designated in Nabucco as a key supplier for future exports to Europe. However, the country was sidelined from the scheme in 2008 due to a series of complications that emerged - the most important of which were US sanctions that banned foreign investments in Iran’s energy sector.
Talks over Iran's participation in Nabucco coincide with a parallel project which is pursued by the Swiss energy group EGL. This project was also aborted due to US sanctions.
There have recently been random discussions between Iranian officials as well as parties involved in both above projects to revive them. However, a firm decision to take either of them off the ground is not expected to be taken in the near future as the complications over plans to export Iran’s gas to Europe still remain.
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