Italy expects the visit of the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, the letter of the Italian President Sergio Mattarella on the occasion of the Independence Day of our country, published today in the newspaper "Neutral Turkmenistan".

"I am sure that the upcoming visit of your Excellency will be an important moment for further strengthening the friendship between our peoples and the relations linking Ashgabat and Rome at the political, economic and cultural levels. In the spirit of friendship and in anticipation of meeting with your Excellency in the Quirinal, I once again express my warm wishes of well – being to you and your country," the letter addressed to the Turkmen counterpart writes.

According to the state statistics Committee of Turkmenistan, in total exports by country, the largest increase in January 2019 compared to January 2018 was recorded in Italy – more than ten times. Foreign trade turnover with Italy in recent years amounted annually to about 1.5 billion us dollars with a significant predominance of Turkmen exports.

According to Trend, the presence of the Italian business is noticeable in the oil and gas sector. In November 2014, Eni extended its operations in Turkmenistan under the production sharing agreement (PSA) for ten years. It is a contract area of more than a thousand square kilometers in the Balkan province (region) of the country.

The company has also recently shown interest in exploring offshore blocks 19 and 20 in the Turkmen part of the Caspian Sea with reserves of more than 500 million tons of oil and 630 billion cubic meters of natural gas.

It is noteworthy that the leadership of Eni earlier in the negotiations with Turkmenistan stated its desire in the long term to assist with the release of Turkmen gas to world markets.