Armenia Set to Boost Gas Imports from Iran

Armenian Ambassador to Iran Artashes Tumanyan said on Monday that his country is interested to import more gas from Iran.

Addressing a meeting themed “Iran-Armenia Ties, Opportunities and Challenges”, he added that recent political development in Yerevan have had no impact on the country’s foreign policy.

He also voiced his country’s readiness for increasing exports of electricity to Iran, hoping that the two countries’ exchanges would rise in near future.

As to Washington’s pressure on Yerevan to reduce relations with Iran, he said, “The US has talked with Armenia about Tehran-Yerevan ties, as they have understood that Tehran relations are of high significance for us.”

Meanwhile, Chairman of Iran-Armenia Friendship Society Mohammad Reza Damavandi complained that despite high historic and political relations in the cultural and media fields, the two countries have failed to widen their relations to desirable levels. 

While Tehran and Yerevan have set a target of one billion dollars, they have had only 200 to 250 million dollars in trade exchanges, he said.

Earlier in min-August, Iranian Deputy Energy Minister Homayoun Haeri announced that Tehran and Yerevan are currently working hard to finalize implementation of the third power transmission line from Iran to Armenia.

“Taking timely measures for implementation of the third power transmission line from Iran to Armenia is one of the most important parts of Iran-Armenia bilateral and multilateral cooperation,” Haeri said after his meeting with Armenian Minister of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources Artur Grigoryan in Yerevan on Friday.

The Iranian deputy energy minister said that during his meeting with Grigoryan, the Armenian minister underlined that the importance of finalizing the project of construction of the third high-voltage Iran-Armenia power transmission line.

Grigoryan, who serves also as a co-chairman of the Armenian-Iranian intergovernmental commission, noted that in the context of intensification of economic cooperation between Tehran and Yerevan, construction of a high-voltage power transmission line between Armenia and Georgia can play a serious role.

The sides also exchanged views on the agreements reached at the 15th meeting of the Armenian-Iranian intergovernmental commission held in Yerevan in 2018. It was stressed that the intergovernmental commission has a special mission in deepening and expanding trade and economic relations between the countries.

Both sides stressed the importance of the need to intensify mutual visits, which help find effective solutions to problems arising in the implementation of joint projects.

Iran and Armenia signed four agreements in the fields of economy, customs and sports agreements in February.

The four cooperation agreements in the fields of economy, customs and sports were inked at the closing ceremony of 15th Summit of Joint Commission of Iran and Armenia Cooperation.

Earlier this year, Iranian Energy Minister Reza Ardakanian had placed special emphasis on the necessity of steering public and private sectors to increase transaction volume and joint investment.

"Fortunately, the 15th meeting of Joint Technical, Economic and Cultural Commission between Iran and Armenia was held in an amicable and peaceful environment," he said, adding, “I hope that mutual cooperation would be boosted between the two countries in the best possible form in future."