BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 11. The volume of natural gas supplies from Turkmenistan to Iraq will amount to about 9 billion cubic meters per year, TurkicWorld reports.

The corresponding Protocol on the main commercial terms of the agreement on the sale, purchase and sale of Turkmen natural gas was signed in Ashgabat following a meeting of representatives of the Turkmenistan's Turkmengaz State Concern with an Iraqi delegation headed by the Minister of Electricity Ziad Ali Fadel.

According to the protocol, 9 billion cubic meters of Turkmenistan's natural gas will be transported annually through Iran to Iraq under the swap scheme for a period of 5 years.

Meanwhile, in October of this year, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Turkmengaz State Concern and the Ministry of Electricity of Iraq.

This agreement is an important step in the development of cooperation between Turkmenistan and Iraq in the energy sector. It will allow Turkmenistan to diversify its gas exports and provide Iraq with stable energy supplies.

According to the results of this year, gas production in Turkmenistan is expected to exceed 80 billion cubic meters, of which about 73 billion cubic meters will be accounted for by Turkmengaz, and exports are projected to amount to about 40 billion cubic meters, of which about 35 billion cubic meters will be supplied by the state concern.