TEHRAN, September 8. /TASS/. The first stage of Russian gas supplies to Iran will start in a few months, Iran's Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali said, adding that a delegation from Russia will arrive in Tehran soon to discuss the price issue.

"Russian energy officials will visit Tehran next week to finalize talks on Russian gas imports," he was quoted as saying by the Tasnim news agency. All issues except the price have already been resolved, the diplomat noted.

The first stage will start "in a few months, but the second and third will require infrastructure," he said. "And it has been decided that Russia will invest in the creation of infrastructure," Jalali added.

Russian Energy Minister Sergey Tsivilyov said in January that Moscow and Tehran had agreed on a route for a gas pipeline to Iran via Azerbaijan, with negotiations in the final stages of agreeing on the price of supplies. The volume of deliveries at the first stage could reach 2 bln cubic meters, with the prospect of increasing it to 55 bln cubic meters. Jalali expressed hope in an interview with TASS in August that Russian gas supplies to the Islamic republic via Azerbaijan would start shortly, adding that almost all issues with Gazprom had been resolved.