Armenia, Iran to build second bridge on border

YEREVAN. Aug 19 (Interfax) - Armenia and Iran intend to build a second bridge on the joint border, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said.

"Considering the growing traffic between our countries, we have reached an agreement to build a second bridge on the Armenian-Iranian border," Pashinyan said at a joint press briefing with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Yerevan on Tuesday.

The most important current project in the energy sector is the third Armenia-Iran power transmission line, he said.

"We also discussed this matter with my colleague, and we have a clear idea that the project should be completed as soon as possible. With the commissioning of the third line, Armenia will be able to export more electricity to Iran," Pashinyan said.

The Armenian-Iranian 44-kilometer-long border runs along the Araks river. Armenia has been receiving gas from Iran since 2009, converting it into electricity and exporting it to Iran at the rate of 3 kW/h from 1 cubic meter of natural gas. The power plants involved in the program generate 4-4.5 kW/h based on 1 cubic meter of natural gas from Iran, with the surplus remaining in Armenia.

The natural gas supplied from Iran is used exclusively as part of the gas-for-electricity program, the agreement under which is valid until 2030.