Energy-rich Turkmenistan will begin supplying natural gas through two new pipelines to China and Iran in December, state media reported Saturday. «Commissioning of the pipelines will be another important step in implementing a new energy strategy for Turkmenistan, which provides for both increased hydrocarbon production and the diversification of energy supplies to world markets,» President Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov said in remarks televised Saturday. The inauguration of the 4,300-mile (7,000-kilometer) pipeline from Turkmenistan to China is expected in mid-December. In June, China clinched a deal to buy 1.4 trillion cubic feet (40 billion cubic meters) from Turkmenistan annually starting next year. The unveiling of a second pipeline to neighboring Iran, which will complement a route that currently supplies around 280 billion cubic feet (8 billion cubic meters) of gas annually, is planned for the same month. The 19-mile (30-kilometer) pipeline will have a capacity to deliver an additional 440 billion cubic feet (12.5 billion cubic meters) of gas per year. Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is expected to attend a ceremony in Turkmenistan to mark the start of operations, the Associated Press reported.
