According to a report carried by South Korea’s Pulse News on Wednesday, National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) may sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with KOGAS on the construction of the pipeline in April or May.
The $1.5 billion pipeline project will be completed in three phases to cover the Iran-the Strait of Hormuz section, the strait section and the Oman-LNG terminal section, the report added.
Natural gas produced from gas fields in Iran’s huge offshore South Pars energy hub will be sent to the Sohar industrial port complex in Oman via the pipeline and then to the rest of the world through vessels departing from LNG terminals there.
The project began to be studied 10 years ago and in 2013 Iran and Oman agreed to push for the plan. It was almost aborted due to anti-Tehran sanctions later but was revived after Iran and six world powers reached a nuclear agreement in July 2015.
Tehran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) on July 14, 2015 finalized a comprehensive deal on Tehran’s nuclear program and implemented it on January 16.
The comprehensive nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), terminated all nuclear-related sanctions on Iran after coming into force.