The blast took place in Turkey's eastern Agri province some 15 kilometers from the Iranian border, Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz said late Monday.
The fire breakout by an alleged sabotage attack was put out within a
short time, said the Turkish official.
This stopped the gas flow from Iran to Turkey.
"We have
taken measures to meet the natural gas demand in the area. Turkish citizens and
industrialists should be at ease," Yildiz was quoted by the Turkish
Anadolu Agency as saying.
No one has
immediately claimed responsibility for the blast but some local media say the
outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) is behind the attack.
Iran is Turkey’s
second-biggest gas supplier after Russia.
Iran and Turkey
have reached an agreement in principle to increase the quantity of Iran's
exported gas to Turkey.
During recent
years, Iran, which according to the latest review of world energy by the
London-based oil giant, BP, possesses the world’s largest proven gas reserves,
has been taking major steps to boost production and export of natural gas by
increasing foreign and domestic investment, especially in its South Pars offshore
gas field.
South Pars gas
field covers an area of 9,700 square kilometers, 3,700 square kilometers of
which are in Iran’s territorial waters in the Persian Gulf. The remaining 6,000
square kilometers are situated in Qatar’s territorial waters.
The field is estimated to contain a significant amount of natural gas, accounting for about eight percent of the world’s reserves, and approximately 18 billion barrels of condensate.
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