TEHRAN, Dec. 20 (Shana) -- Iran says it is likely to claim a major share in regional gas markets in the near future given the repeated calls from leading energy companies to enter the OPEC member's LNG and FLNG projects, a senior Iranian gas official said.

Managing-director of National Iranian Gas Exports Company (NIGEC) Ali-Reza Kameli told Shana that many foreign firms have indicated their interest in entering Iran's liquefied natural gas (LNG) and floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) projects of the country in the post-sanctions setting.

"NIGEC is now studying proposals by these companies and will naturally pick the best bid," he said.

Regarding the fact that the Middle East states, excluding Qatar, have comparatively little natural gas resources, he said Iran is poised to win a large market share in the region in the coming years once it manages to boost its gas output.

Iran currently produces over 650 mcm/d of natural gas which is planned to cross 1 bcm/d by 2018.

"Iran will consider pipelines and LNG projects for exporting its gas," he said.

Iran is now ready to export natural gas to Iraq and has just signed a contract with its Arab neighbor to supply its Basra city with 50 mcm/d of gas.

"Iran is the only country in the region with excess gas output that can be earmarked for exports or be used in different industries," Iranian Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zangeneh said in November, arguing that although Qatar enjoys vast gas reserves, it has already allocated its supplies for various purposes and there is not much left for further use.

By SHANA