The information agency Tansim quoting Hamid Reza Araqi (see the photo), the managing director of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC), reports that Iran has prepared the required documents to file a lawsuit in the International Court of Arbitration against Turkmenistan for its failure to supply gas.
Three cases claimed by Iran are the price of gas, the damage the Turkmens inflicted on Iran in winter by cutting off gas supplies, and the quality of gas delivered to Iran.
Araqi was quoted as saying that Iran’s documents are ready to be submitted to the International Court of Arbitration and added that Turkmenistan had been notified of the decision. It should be mentioned that the Iranian side would not refer the case to the international court if the NIGC and Turkmengaz reach an understanding.
Let us recall that in late 2016 a public row broke out between Iran and Turkmenistan after Turkmengaz demanded that the NIGC settle the debt of $1,8 billion.
The Iran media outlets reported that after lengthy negotiations the sides had come to mutual agreement.Despite this, on 1 January 2017 Turkmenistan cut off gas supply to Iran.