Persian Gas Pipeline

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Persian Pipeline, also known as Pars Pipeline, Iran–Europe pipeline, Iran–Turkey-Europe (ITE) pipeline, was a proposed natural gas pipeline. There have been no development updates since 2016 and the project is presumed to be cancelled.

Location

The pipeline would run from Assaluyah, Iran through Bazargan, Iran to Europe through Turkey, Greece, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France, and Spain.

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Project Details

• Operator:
• Parent Company: National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC)
• Current capacity:
• Proposed capacity: 37-40 billion cubic meters per year
• Diameter: 56 inches
• Length: 2,100 miles / 3,300 km
• Status: Cancelled
• Start Year:

Background

The Persian Gas Pipeline, also known as the Pars Pipeline and Iran–Europe pipeline (خط لولهٔ پارس), is a proposed natural gas pipeline to transfer Iranian gas from the Persian Gulf to European markets.

The proposal originally was floated in 2007 as a project of the National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) and Swiss energy company Elektrizitätsgesellschaft Laufenburg (EGL). But, it was apparently abandoned after EGL halted its contract with Iran in October 2010 in the face of pressure over U.S. sanctions against Iran. In 2016, "with the lifting of UN sanctions and the deterioration of its relations with Russia driving the EU to look for alternative sources of energy with more enthusiasm than ever, the proposal has now resurfaced" according to Business Investor Guide.

Route

This planned pipeline will connect Iran's South Pars/North Dome Gas-Condensate field with Turkey and then with European markets. It would consist of two principal sections:

• The Iranian section, which is also called Iran Gas Trunkline 9 or IGAT 9 Gas Pipeline, starting in Asaluyeh will transport gas from South Pars gas field to the city of Bazargan, Iran at the border with Turkey.
• The European section, which will cross Turkey, passing on to Greece and Italy. In Italy the pipeline would be split: the northern branch will run to Switzerland, Austria and Germany, while the southern branch will supply France and Spain. It is not clear if the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, foreseen for Iran gas export to Europe, would be part of this project or not.

Technical description

The overall length of the pipeline would be 3,300 km (2,100 mi) and the capacity would be 37–40 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year. The cost of Iranian section is estimated to be around $7 billion. This section will be 1,800 km (1,118 mi) long and it would consist of 17 compressor stations. Each compressor station would have 4 turbo compressors. The cost of each station is expected to be around $100 million.

The Turkish section will be 660 km (410 mi) long and cost about one billion euros. The pipeline would cross difficult geographic environments, notably mountainous areas. It was expected to be operational by 2014.

Ownership

The pipeline was proposed as a Build-Own-Operate project. According to the National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) two Iranian and two foreign companies were bidding for the contract awarded to one Iranian company or consortium and one foreign company. It is also alleged that Iran is relying on financial involvement from China. China is reportedly to consider $42.8 billion for investment in Iranian refineries and pipelines.

Iranian Oil Minister Masoud Mir-Kazemi confirmed in July 2010 that NIGEC and Turkey's Som Petrol signed a contract to build a pipeline that will cross Turkey.

Alternative projects

The Persian pipeline is seen as an alternative to the Nabucco pipeline. Although Iran was willing to be a part of the Nabucco project, the Iranian government reconsidered its options and decided to focus on the Persian pipeline. According to Hossein Zoulanvar, a member of Majlis Energy Commission of Iran, the reasoning to construct and use Persian pipeline for exports to Europe instead comes from US pressures on European countries to impose sanctions on Iranian gas sector. Russia, which had been trying to block the Nabucco project from realization, has been trying to re-route Azerbaijani gas exports planned for initial phase of the project through other possible pipelines such as Mozdok–Makhachkala–Kazi Magomed pipeline. Although many argue that Persian pipeline may seem as an alternative to Nabucco, hence rival to South Stream project, Russia denounces the allegations and backs the Iranian initiative of building Persian pipeline.

Articles and resources

External articles

Wikipedia also has an article on Persian Pipeline (Persian Pipeline. This article may use content from the Wikipedia article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License].