Shafaq News/ Iraq is gearing up for summer with a notable surge in natural gas exports from, Iran's "Mehr" news agency reported on Sunday.

Citing Cyprus-based MEES, a leading regional oil and gas analytics firm, Mehr quoted a high-ranking official in Iraq's Ministry of Electricity saying that daily gas imports from Iran reached an average of 30-40 million cubic meters throughout April 2023.

The substantial increase in Iranian gas supplies to Iraq, nearly tripling to quadrupling during April, arrives as the nation anticipates an intensely hot summer. As temperatures rise, the demand for cooling is projected to reach unprecedented levels throughout Iraq.

Iraq's reliance on Iran for a considerable portion of its gas supply is crucial for powering the country's electricity generation plants. Baghdad has secured exemptions from US sanctions pertaining to Iran, enabling the uninterrupted import of energy from its neighboring nation.

In 2021, Iranian gas supplies to Iraq experienced a significant decline when Baghdad faced difficulties in settling outstanding financial obligations to Iran for gas imports. The supplies remained at low levels until early this year when Iranian authorities announced that Iraq had managed to pay its debts.