Iraq approves plan to pipe Iranian gas to Syria: Report
An Iraqi worker examines gas emissions from an oil pipe at a refinery in Baghdad.
Iraq's oil minister will approve a plan for a new pipeline channeling Iranian gas to Syria and possibly on into Europe by way of Iraqi territory, according to Middle East Online.
Oil Minister Abdelkarim al-Luaybi has been ordered by cabinet to sign the agreement for the project, which Iranian sources say may cost some $10 billion and would extend several thousands miles, said the report.
Iran's deputy oil minister Javad Ouji said in July that construction will begin "once funding has been secured," reported Middle East Online. It was not immediately clear how much financing had been secured so far.
The project envisions a pipeline stretching from Iran's southern Assalouyeh port into Iraq and then on into Syria and would reportedly be capable of pumping 110 million cubic meters of gas a day.
Iran is home to one of the world's largest-known gas reserves.
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