ArmInfo. Relations between Iran and Armenia are of particular importance for Tehran. Iranian Ambassador to Yerevan Mehdi Sobhani told the Iranian news agency CNN.
According to him, Armenia has a safe and stable 46-kilometer border with Iran, and strengthening bilateral ties also contributes to the development of the economies of the two states. The implementation of joint projects in the field of energy and road construction helps improve regional infrastructure. Last year, Iranian companies signed with their Armenian partners the largest agreement since Armenia gained independence on the construction of part of the road on the southern section of the North-South highway corridor. The total cost of this program is $212 million. Thanks to this program, travel time will be significantly reduced, which is very important. Iranian companies are also implementing other, smaller programs in various parts of Armenia.
Sobhani emphasized that the process of expanding the gas and electricity exchange project is underway. A year ago, Iran and Armenia extended the gas-for-electricity agreement until 2030. The ambassador noted that the parties managed to bring to the final stage the construction of the third Iran-Armenia power line, which will be put into operation within a few months. "Thus, we will be able to double the import of electricity from Armenia," the diplomat emphasized.
He also recalled that trade turnover between the two states increased to $711 million. "Armenia is an important market for Iran, since this country is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union," the ambassador noted.
Earlier, ArmInfo reported that Armenia is carrying out a barter deal with Iran, according to which it receives 1 cubic meter of Iranian gas in exchange for supplies of 3 kWh of electricity in the opposite direction. With the construction of the third power line, these volumes will increase significantly. However, the project for the construction of the North-South energy corridor, designed to unite the electric power systems of Iran, Armenia, Georgia and Russia, has encountered a number of problems, primarily associated with frequent postponements of the commissioning of the facility. If the completion date for the Iran- Armenia power transmission line project was previously announced as the end of 2018, at the end of December 2021 the responsible structures already announced that the line would be ready by the end of 2024. The main contractor for the construction of the 400-kilovolt Iran-Armenia power transmission line is the Iranian company Sunir. The total cost of the project is $107.9 million, of which 77% was provided by the Iran Export Development Bank and 23% by Sunir itself. As for the Armenia-Georgia power transmission line, the parties have not yet started its construction.
