TEHRAN - The first phase of transferring water from the Caspian Sea to Iran’s central regions will start today.

 

The project, which is considered to be the largest pipe-laying project in the country, will be inaugurated by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the northern city of Sari, Mehr news agency reported.

 

According to the plan, water will be transferred from Sari to the city of Semnan within 24 months.

 

Energy Minister Majid Namjou said on April 7 that the plan aims to provide central provinces with water for industrial and agricultural purposes.

 

Once the plan comes on stream, some 500 million cubic meters of water will be transferred per annum, he added.

 

He said that the plan has been developed based on the idea of connecting the Caspian Sea, in the north, with the Persian Gulf, in the south.