TEHRAN, Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Baku tested the pipeline delivery of gas supplies to Iran following the successful virtual run of the project last week, Iranian energy executives said.
The National Iranian Gas Export Co. in December signed an agreement with the State Oil Co. of Azerbaijan Republic for gas supplies to northern Iran.
Iran and Azerbaijan are connected currently through the 916-mile Kazi-Magomed-Astara gas pipeline, which has a total capacity of 353 billion cubic feet per year.
In-place infrastructure would allow Azerbaijan to export 17.6 billion cubic feet of gas per year to Iran. Negotiations from the signing included talks on expanding that volume by boosting the capacity of gas compressor stations.
Reza Kassaeizadeh, the managing director of NIGEC, said both sides plan to discuss long-term agreements for 70 billion cubic feet of Azeri gas deliveries each year, the semiofficial Fars News Agency reports.
Azerbaijan is emerging as a regional gas giant, with several countries lobbying for access to its rich natural resources.
Both countries hold some of the richest gas deposits in the world, though Iran lacks the infrastructure needed to make full use of its gas.
