Via Mehr news, an article on Iran’s ambitions to become a regional energy hub with Russia’s support:

Iran’s oil minister said on Thursday that oil and gas swap between Iran and Russia would turn Iran the hub of energy in the region.

Javad Owji, who accompanied Iran’s First Vice-President Mohammad Mokhber in Moscow to attend the second meeting of the Caspian Economic Forum (CEF), said that Iran and Russia had made a lot of collaboration and interaction with each other on energy swap and transit.

Referring to the status of Russia’s Gazprom company in the oil and gas industry in the world, he announced the joint investment for the production of LNG (liquefied natural gas) and technologies related to gas facilities.

The minister said “As gas exporting countries, Iran and Russia have done a lot of cooperation in the field of energy swaps, and during the trip to Russia, new understanding will be made for the establishment of facilities and the exploitation of joint gas fields.”

Fortunately, good negotiations were held with the officials of Gazprom Company and other companies to bolster bilateral cooperation, he emphasized.

“Fortunately, there have been good talks with the [Gazprom] company and other companies, with the MoUs reaching up to $40 billion value,” he added.

The oil minister added about the cooperation between Iran and Russia and said “in the North Pars fild, Kish and the creation of a high pressure in South Pars field, the two countries are cooperating, adding that “we have signed MoUs on gas exports to Pakistan and Oman, and the construction of the export pipeline to the two neighbor countries, which will be jointly carried out by Iran and Russia.”

Iranian oil minister described Iran’s cooperation with the Caspian Sea littoral states in the field of oil, gas and energy ‘strategic’ and expressed hope that the agreement to swap 15 billion cubic meters of gas will be finalized within weeks.

Presence of the first vice president in Moscow and bilateral and multilateral talks with the officials of the Caspian Sea littoral states can further be developed and the agreements made will be implemented optimally, he added.