June 16, 2017
Iran’s free gas export to Turkey has given rise to some controversy with opponents of the current government saying the current government is to blame, and some saying that Ankara has already paid for the gas it is receiving from Tehran for free.
Former Oil Minister Ros-tam Qasemi, who served under President Ahmadi-nejad, maintains that officials of the Rohani Administration are to blame for the international court ruling ordering Iran to reimburse Turkey for overcharges.
He has slammed Rohani officials for failure to defend the rights of the Iranian people, saying this has led to the issuance of a verdict by the International Court of Arbitration in Turkey’s favor. Tehran is repaying the debt by piping gas to turkey without charge. (See story in last week’s Iran Times, Page Five.)
In 1996, Iran signed a contract to export up to 10 billion cubic meters of gas per year to Turkey over 25 years. But Turkey’s state oil and gas company, Botas, appealed in March 2012 to the International Court of Arbitration saying that Tehran had overcharged it for the gas. Iran must pay $1.9 billion in reimbursements to Turkey.
Commenting on the dispute, Qasemi said the case was brought to the court by Turkey in 2015, not 2012. (The case reached trial in 2015, but was filed in 2012, when Ahmadi-nejad was president.)
“As per the case, the Turkish government had complaints about the price of the contract and made an appeal to the international tribunal. These gentlemen [the Rohani Administration] claim that they have developed cordial relations with other countries. Nevertheless, currently, we see that due to their inability to effectively defend the Iranian nation’s rights, a heavy loss have been inflicted on the country’s treasury.”
In response, the Oil Ministry said the funds being paid to Turkey are, in fact, Turkey’s money, which the country had paid Iran, based on the then-formula for calculating the gas price.
Iran is not mandated to pay back the money in cash. Turkey will receive gas for reimbursement. Thus, no losses have been inflicted on Iran’s treasury, the ministry reasoned.
