Azernews.Az

TEHRAN - High-ranking Iranian and Iraqi officials started new round of gas talks in Baghdad on Tuesday.

Transferring Iran’s natural gas to Iraqi power plants and transiting Iranian gas to European countries via Iraq are the main topics of the negotiations, the Mehr News Agency reported.

Deputy Oil Minister Javad Owji said the visiting Iranian delegation is at the moment involved in talks with the Iraqi side, expressing Iran’s readiness for providing the Western neighbor with natural gas.

"We have formed a joint working group on gas transfer (to Iraq)," he told Mehr News Agency on Wednesday.

"We envisage that Iran would be able to supply Iraq with its required gas in the next two years, in case the negotiations were finalized," Managing Director of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) added.

Meanwhile, Deputy Managing Director of NIGC Mostafa Kashkouli, said last week that Iran is negotiating to pump its gas to Iraq via two pipelines that cross the border at Dehloran and Khorramshahr.

Iran possesses the world’s second largest gas reserves, which compose almost 16 percent of the world’s total. The country is eager to expand its consumer base for energy resources.

Iraq had asked for the daily import of 300-500 mcf of Iranian gas.

Iran is looking to transport its natural gas to markets in Greece and Italy through Iraq and Syria.

In the short and medium terms, Iraq is aiming to develop its gas reserves in the south and north of that country. By joining Nabucco pipeline in the north, Iraq intends to reach European market.