Azerbaijan, Baku, Nov.2 / Trend A.Taghiyeva /
Today Turkey does not plan to reduce imports of natural gas from Iran, Anadolu agency quotes Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz as saying on Friday.
"Turkey does not plan to reduce gas supplies from Iran, as the EU sanctions against Iran will not cover existing contracts," Yildiz said.
In mid-October the EU countries'governments imposed sanctions against major Iranian state companies in the oil and gas industry, and strengthened restrictions on the Central Bank, cranking up financial pressure over Tehran's nuclear program.
In 1996, Iran and Turkey signed an agreement to supply 10 billion cubic meters of gas to Turkey annually (30 million cubic meters per day).
According to the statistic data of the Turkish State Pipeline Company Botas, Turkey imported 39.7 billion cubic meters of gas from Iran in 2011.
Iranian gas exports to Turkey increased by 12 percent in 2011, compared to 2010, and amounted to 24 million cubic meters of gas per day.
