Iran’s Natural Gas Exports Down 30% in 2024

SEATTLE (Oil Monster): Iran’s exports of natural gas fell by nearly a third last year, according to data by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), as the country continued to provide more gas supplies to its domestic customers.

Latest output data by OPEC cited in a Saturday report by Tasnim agency, showed that Iran had exported 8.967 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas in 2024, down 30% from the year before.

Iran uses pipelines to export gas to neighboring countries with a bulk of supplies going to Turkey and Iraq.

The country, which has the world's second-largest natural gas resources, has stalled its export expansion programs in recent years, especially its plans to launch liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, as it faces a growing domestic demand.

Iran produces more than 1 bcm per day of natural gas with exports accounting for less than 10% of the total output.

OPEC data showed that gas exports by Russia, a main rival of Iran in the regional gas market, had also declined by 34% last year to reach 159 bcm as the country continued to grapple with the impacts of US and European sanctions on its energy sector.

Other major regional producer Qatar exported 162 bcm of gas last year, almost flat on the figures reported in 2023.

The United States was the world’s largest natural gas exporter last year with some 218 bcm of shipments as the country continued to benefit from restrictions on Russian supplies because of the war in Ukraine.

US exports represented a 16% increase from figures reported at the end of 2021, just months before the war in Ukraine started.

 Courtesy: www.presstv.ir