Iran will soon sign a contract with political allies Syria and Iraq to export its natural gas to the Mediterranean region.

Iranian and Syrian oil ministers said in January their countries planned to build a gas pipeline with the cooperation of Iraq to widen export options for regional energy players but that the pipeline was still at the idea stage.

"A trilateral agreement between the three countries on the transit of gas has been reached ... The first official contract is ready to be signed soon," Javad Oji, head of the National Iranian Gas Co. (NIGC), was quoted as saying.

"We plan to transit gas from the South Pars field through Iraq, Syrian and then Lebanon to the Mediterranean area and Europe," Oji added.

Oji said up to $6 billion was needed to build the 56-inch pipeline and that it would have the capacity to transfer 110 million cubic metres of gas per day, Reuters reported, citing semi-official Mehr news agency.