In an interview with Public TV aired on November 11, Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan spoke on many matters of public concern. Among others, PM Pashinyan referred to the future increase in gas imports from neighboring Iran.  

“Upon completing the construction of the third Armenia-Iran high-voltage power transmission line, Armenia will be ready to increase the volume of gas imports from Iran," PM said.

Referring to the extension of the Memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the field of natural gas signed between Armenia and Iran, the PM noted: "The essence of the agreement is that we import gas from Iran in exchange for electricity to Iran, obviously, with profitability ratios. At this moment, the power transmission lines connecting Armenia to Iran got overloaded. We need to expand our export capacity if we want to consume more gas to generate electricity. That would be feasible upon the construction of the third power transmission line. As soon as the construction is completed, we will be ready to import more gas and supply more electricity to Iran in return”.

Nikol Pashinyan also stressed that there is no contradiction with Russia on this matter since the "Gas for electricity" deal with Iran has existed for a long time.

When asked about the role of Iran in mending the rifts between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Pashinyan mentioned that Iran is a significant player in regional and international affairs. “This is why we are closely cooperating with our partners in Iran," Pashinyan added.