Hamid Bavard, the acting Minister of Oil, made a statement on the position of the Islamic Republic of Iran at the 28th meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum. During this event, he held bilateral and multilateral consultations aimed at strengthening Iran's cooperation with other countries possessing energy reserves.
According to an IRNA report, Hamid Bavard continued the line of contacts and trilateral interaction between Iran, Russia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan, which was previously conducted at the level of the heads of state of these countries in Turkmenistan.
The trilateral meeting involved the acting Minister of Oil, the Russian Minister of Energy, and the Minister of Energy of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The parties discussed ways to strengthen partnership in the energy sector and increase efficiency in gas market presence.
Bavard, Sergey Tsivilev, the Russian Minister of Energy, and Parviz Shahbazov, the Azerbaijani Minister of Energy, exchanged views on methods for developing trilateral cooperation between Tehran, Moscow, and Baku.
At this meeting, the acting Minister of Oil stated that a general agreement had been reached on gas exchange between Iran and Russia through the Republic of Azerbaijan, and the technical stages of implementing this agreement are currently underway and nearing completion.
Bavard added that he hopes that after the completion of the pipeline gas transmission program implemented by the Russian side through the Republic of Azerbaijan, there will be an opportunity for gas exchange between Iran and Russia in the near future.
During the bilateral meeting with the Russian Minister of Energy, the acting Minister of Oil expressed satisfaction with the development of bilateral cooperation. He noted that the agreement between Tehran, Moscow, and Baku to conclude a contract for gas trade between Iran and Russia is promising news, and efforts to finalize this contract have accelerated.
The meeting was also dedicated to considering the issue of attracting investment from Russian companies for the development of Iranian oil and gas fields. Furthermore, both sides examined existing obstacles to fulfilling agreements reached at the 19th meeting of the Joint Economic Committee of Iran and Russia and discussed solutions to eliminate these barriers.
The Russian Minister of Energy also announced that the next meeting of the Joint Economic Committee of the two countries will be held in Russia.
The Joint Economic Committee of Iran and Russia is one of the key mechanisms for promoting and developing cooperation between the two states in various economic areas. A significant portion of issues concerning energy, investment, trade, and joint project implementation is resolved within this commission.
The 19th meeting of the Joint Economic Committee of Iran and Russia took place in Tehran in Bahman 1404. A wide range of topics was considered, including the completion of the International North-South Transport Corridor, gas transmission from Russia to Iran, as well as the development of cooperation in the fields of space industry, nuclear energy, commercial and economic affairs, finance and banking, customs, industry and mining, agriculture, healthcare, culture and tourism, and science and technology.