Mehdi Jamshidi-Dana, a senior official with Iran's Gas Transfer Company on Sunday, said that the Islamic Republic expected gas flows to Turkey to resume by mid-July after an explosion on a pipeline in Turkey halted exports at the end of March. The official added that the state-owned National Iranian Gas Company rejected Turkey's claim that the supply halt represented a force majeure event.
Jamshidi-Dana said that the repair of such an explosion usually takes around three to seven days, but it appeared that the repairs had still not been completed since the accident on March 31. He added that Iran had offered to repair the pipeline in eight days, but it was not welcomed by Turkey’s side. He warned that Iran might involve international arbitration to resolve the issue.
Turkey's import of Iranian gas stood at 7.7 Bcm in 2019, about 17% of its overall gas imports. Turley's gas importer Botas has a long-term contract to purchase 9.6 Bcm/year of Iranian gas.
