Iran, Turkmenistan Discuss Gas Swaps, Economic Ties

The leaders of Iran and Turkmenistan have called for strengthening bilateral relations, particularly in the areas of gas swaps and transportation.

In a phone call on February 10 with Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, Chairman of the People’s Council of Turkmenistan and national leader, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian emphasized Tehran’s commitment to enhancing cooperation with the Caspian Sea littoral states to protect mutual interests, according to the official website of the Iranian president.

Pezeshkian highlighted the potential for expanding collaboration in various sectors, including gas swaps, transportation, and electricity exchange. He noted that regular joint commission meetings would significantly improve economic cooperation between Iran and Turkmenistan.

The Iranian president also praised Turkmenistan for designating 2025 as the Year of Peace and Trust, expressing Tehran’s desire to strengthen ties with Caspian Sea littoral countries to safeguard the region’s environment.

At the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Turkmenistan proposed a resolution to declare 2025 the “International Year of Peace and Trust,” which was unanimously adopted with the co-sponsorship of 86 nations.

For his part, Berdimuhamedow shared that Turkmenistan has reached an agreement with the Turkish company Botaş to transit Turkmen natural gas to Türkiye through Iran via a swap arrangement.

He also revealed that Turkmenistan has proposed constructing a power transmission line from the Mary Power Plant in Turkmenistan to the Iranian border in the Merv-Mashhad direction, aiming to further cooperation in the energy sector.

Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced on February 11 that Türkiye will begin importing natural gas from Turkmenistan on March 1. Although he did not specify volumes, he emphasized that this agreement would “strengthen the natural gas supply security of our country and our region, while advancing the strategic cooperation between the two countries.”

Several potential routes for transporting Turkmen gas to Türkiye or Europe exist. One such option involves a swap mechanism between Iran, Azerbaijan, and Türkiye. Under this arrangement, Turkmen gas could be transferred to Türkiye via Iran, or it could reach Türkiye through an exchange involving gas flows between Iran and Azerbaijan. Another option is a pipeline through the Caspian Sea, providing a connection between Turkmenistan and Türkiye via Azerbaijan for gas delivery.

Last July, Turkmenistan signed a swap agreement with Iran to sell its gas to Iraq. Under this agreement, 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas are to be exported from Turkmenistan to Iraq via Iran through a swap mechanism. Iranian companies are to build a new 125-km gas transfer pipeline, along with three compressor stations in Turkmenistan, which will increase the gas export capacity from Turkmenistan to Iran to 40 bcm per year.

In June 2024, the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) and the Turkish company Botaş signed contracts for natural gas supply, transportation, and transit. These contracts, following the “On Natural Gas Cooperation” agreement signed between the two countries on May 14, will facilitate the supply of natural gas from SOCAR to Türkiye, delivery of Azerbaijani gas to Bulgaria via Türkiye, cooperation in gas supply to the Nakhchivan region of Azerbaijan, and the transportation of Turkmen gas to Türkiye via Azerbaijan and third countries.

Additionally, Berdimuhamedow suggested organizing another meeting of the Turkmen-Iranian Joint Governmental Commission on Economic Cooperation soon. He emphasized the importance of addressing a wide range of issues, including the development of bilateral partnerships in energy, transportation, industry, and other sectors.

On January 30, Turkmenistan, Iran, Russia, and Kazakhstan reaffirmed their commitment to increasing cargo transportation along the eastern route of the North-South transport corridor, which has an annual capacity of 10 million tons. These four Caspian littoral nations previously signed a roadmap for the eastern route of the corridor in July 2024, with plans to expand its capacity to 15 million tons annually by 2027 and 20 million tons by 2030.

The 7,200-km-long International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) was established through an intergovernmental agreement signed by Russia, India, and Iran in 2000, and its membership has since expanded to 14 countries. Russia and Iran anticipate that the corridor will offer an alternative to the Suez Canal, significantly reducing cargo transit times across Eurasia. The primary goal of the INSTC is to reduce cargo transportation time from India to Russia, as well as to Northern and Western Europe, from over 6 weeks to just 3 weeks with the corridor’s full exploitation.