Iran will kick off the operation of a pipeline supplying natural gas to Iraq on Tuesday (January 24), said a senior Iranian official.

The operation will begin as per the memo signed by both the countries in 2009, Iran's oil minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, was quoted as saying in an Iran Daily News report, citing Tasnim News Agency.

The deal involves the supply of around 20-25 million cubic meters of Iranian gas to Iraq, it said.

It was to have gone into operation in 2013 but was delayed because of security issues in Iraq.

The project’s operation this week follows two months of intensive negotiations, added the report.