Russia and Georgia have agreed on gas transportation to Armenia

ArmInfo. Like during the previous years, this year Tbilisi will get 10% of the Russian gas supplied to Armenia via the Georgian territory, Georgian Energy Ministry and Deputy Prime Minister Kakha Kaladze says.

Interfax quotes Kaladze as saying, "The relevant agreement has already been reached. We only have to sign a contract with Gazprom, under which Georgia will implement the provisions of the agreement, which has been valid over the past few years. That is to say, we will get 10% as a transit fee for the supply of Russian natural gas to Armenia".     

To note, the Georgian Government and SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) signed an agreement to increase the Azeri natural gas supply to Georgia by 500 million cu m. So, there is no need to purchase additional amounts of gas from Russia or Iran. Georgia annually consumes approximately 2 bln cu m of natural gas. In 2015, Gazprom supplied Georgia with 295 mln cu m of gas. The rest was received from Azerbaijan.   

To recall, at a roundtable "Eurasian Path of Transcaucasia:  Integration for Development" in Yerevan on Feb 25, Areg Galstyan, Armenian Deputy Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, said that Armenia is ready to provide the available pipelines for the gas supply from Iran to Georgia. "We see no reasons to object. Moreover, we think that Tbilisi is taking an absolutely right decision to diversify the scheme of gas supplies to Georgia. I guess everything depends on the outcome of the Iranian- Georgian negotiations," he said. Earlier NIGEC Head Alireza Kamali said that Iran is negotiating with Georgia to supply it with 200 mln cu m of Iranian gas per annum.  Later, Georgian Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze said that Iran will be able to supply its gas to Georgia via Armenia.