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LNG exports, gas market cooperation and transfer of experience in the field of gas trade were the main topics of the letter of understanding signed between the National Iranian Gas Exports Company (NIGEC) and South Korea's Gas Corporation (KOGAS) on Monday, Platts reported.
The agreement was signed during an ongoing visit by the East Asian country’s President Park Geun-hye to Iran.
According to Iranian officials, Seoul currently buys 400,000 b/d of crude oil and gas condensates from Iran.
Separately, KOGAS also signed a cooperation accord with the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC).
"We are ready to have a good cooperation with Iranian companies in different fields including LNG, installation of national gas grids and transfer of technology," Seung-Hoon Lee, an official with the natural gas company, said.
Iran and South Korea on Monday signed 19 memorandums of understanding at a high-profile ceremony in Tehran, attended by the two countries’ presidents.
Cabinet ministers and senior officials from the two countries signed the documents as part of efforts to boost the relations between Tehran and Seoul.
The deals are meant to boost bilateral collaborations in a range of fields, from maritime transportation to cultural and academic issues.
Heading a big delegation of Korean ministers, top officials and business people, South Korean President Park Geun arrived in Tehran on Sunday for a three-day official trip, marking the first such trip since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1962.
The visit follows a new wave of interest in ties with Iran after Tehran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) on July 14, 2015 reached a conclusion over the text of a comprehensive 159-page deal on Tehran’s nuclear program.
The lasting nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), took effect in January, terminating the nuclear-related sanctions imposed on Iran.
South Korea remains one of the major crude importers from Iran. The East Asian nation’s oil imports from Iran sharply increased earlier this year immediately after the anti-Iran economic sanctions were lifted under the JCPOA.
South Korea is the world’s fifth-largest oil importer while Iran has the fourth largest oil reserves. The trade between the two countries is estimated to have stood at $ 6.1 billion in 2015.
Tasnim News Agency - economy