Several politicians believe such an organization would improve and stabilize the price of gas as well as enhance Iran's political power through greater revenues and closer ties with Russia, a gas producer seen as a strategic ally against unfriendly Western countries. One of the proponents of creating a gas cartel is Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who discussed the idea with Russian Security Council Secretary Igor Ivanov in Tehran on January 28.
Natural Gas's Big Two
Russian officials are reportedly interested, though perhaps not in an OPEC-style cartel. Iran and Russia are believed to hold half of the world's natural-gas reserves.
Mohammad Reza Bahonar, Iran's deputy speaker of parliament, said in Tehran on February 2 that a "gas OPEC" would have many benefits for Iran and other producers, pointing out that exporting gas is more costly than exporting oil, as gas must be liquefied for transport or piped, ISNA reported.
Iranian Oil Minister Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh said in Tehran on February 2 that liquefaction requires technology that some producer countries lack, while natural gas can only be piped to customers in relatively nearby countries, Dow Jones reported.
Several members of Iran's parliamentary Energy Committee concurred on February 2 that international gas prices have yet to reflect its "real" value.
Shirvan representative Hossein Afarideh, a member of the parliamentary Energy Committee, told ISNA that "the future of energy is in gas" and producers "can definitely not control many prices" without a cartel.
An OPEC For Gas
Another committee member, Hossein Nejabat, pointed out the political importance of the cartel. He said in Tehran on February 2 that with oil slowly running out and "the energy issue" a key instrument of the "management and control" of international affairs, Iran must work to form this cartel. The future of energy, he said, is in "petrochemical products and especially in gas," the daily "Aftab-i Yazd" reported.
The political view was stated clearly on February 3 by Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, a member of the parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Committee. He told ISNA that "when the world is becoming daily more dependent on energy," the formation of a "gas OPEC" can give producers and exporters a "strategic position."
He urged officials to start studying the mechanics of forming such a cartel, so the issue is no longer a "general discussion." Another committee member, Hamid Reza Haji-Babai, said the cartel would "prevent the authoritarianism" of Western countries and would be a "center of power to resist Western powers' and especially America's economic and political pressures," "Aftab-i Yazd" reported the next day.
Akbar Torkan, the managing director of the South Pars Oil and Gas Company, told the Mehr news agency on February 3 that gas exporters must not "harm each other any more with unsuitable competition." He said producers could maximize benefits through "constructive cooperation" and that this is the best time for Iran and Russia to cooperate on gas exports, Mehr reported.
Domestic Consumption Problematic
One of the problems Iran faces in this regard is its considerable domestic consumption. As with oil, cheap subsidized gas boosts demand; and gas is subject to wasteful consumption.
Tehran-based academic Ali Khorram asked on February 3 if Iran could play a decisive role in a gas cartel "considering its [large] domestic consumption and the fact that a major part of Iran's gas is injected into oil wells to allow the oil to be exported," iranews.com reported. A recent cold spell led to fuel shortages around the country.
Another problem is Russia's seeming reluctance to form an OPEC-style cartel and preference for cooperation, the daily "Etemad" reported on February 5. It stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin reacted coolly to a previous proposal for a cartel made months ago by Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, apparently at the June 2006 meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which Ahmadinejad attended as an observer.
On February 2, Oil Minister Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh said that all gas producers and especially Russia will have to support the formation of a gas cartel for the idea to materialize, and Russia is giving out "conflicting signals," Dow Jones reported. The agency reported that Iran has for some years sought to bring gas producers together, organizing the Gas Exporting Countries Forum in Tehran in 2001, which reportedly discussed pricing and marketing issues.
The Iranian Economy
IN NEED OF DIVERSIFICATION. Populist Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad is having trouble fulfilling his promises to put the country's petrodollars on the plates of average citizens. Inflation and unemployment remain high and the economy is dominated by the energy sector.
RELATED ARTICLES
Foes Challenge President's Economic Rhetoric
Power Cuts In An Energy-Rich Land Spark Protests
Government Balks At Gasoline Rationing
Weak Economy Challenges Populist President