Turkmenistan intends to increase gas exports sevenfold by 2030

The Turkmen president has said his country intends to boost gas exports sevenfold by 2030 and called on Russia, China and Iran to buy Turkmen gas at European prices, Russian business daily Kommersant said on Monday.
Turkmenistan is planning to extract a total of 230 billion cubic meters of gas, including 180 billion cubic meters intended for export, by 2030, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov told journalists in New York on Friday.
"Our gas reserves are enough for many decades," the president, who arrived in the U.S. to attend a session of the UN General Assembly, was quoted by the paper as saying.
Supplying gas to Europe has become increasingly important for Turkmenistan, home to South Yolotan, the world's fourth largest gas field, which Berdymukhamedov said has estimated reserves of 18 trillion cubic meters. Previously, the Turkmen president estimated the reserves at 4 to 14 trillion cubic meters.
Turkmenistan's total gas deposits contain a total of 24.6 trillion cubic meters of gas, Berdymukhamedov said.
According to Kommersant, the country produced 75 billion cubic meters of gas and was planning to export 50 billion cubic meters, although official statistics have not yet been published.
Michail Korchemkin, who heads the East European Gas Analysis organization, believes that Turkmenistan can export 30 billion cubic meters more gas more than at present, the paper said.
Construction on the East-West pipeline to the North-East Turkmen gas fields with the Caspian Sea began in May. The planned Nabucco gas pipeline will later connect the Caspian to Europe via Turkey.