Determining the Priority of Iran's Natural Gas Export Markets Numerical Taxonomy Method

Sahar Dashtban Farooji

Ph.D Candidate in Economics, Faculty of Economics and Political Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University, dashtban.sahar@gmail.com

Hassan Dargahi[1]

Associate Professor of Economics, Faculty of Economics and Political Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University, h-dargahi@sbu.ac.ir

Received:  2021/03/10          Accepted: 2021/06/29

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify and prioritize export target markets for Iran’s natural gas over a 20-year perspective for the period 2020-2040, using the numerical taxonomy method. In this method we use the indicators of countries' distance from Iran, per capita income, per capita consumption of natural gas and economic growth. The results of this study show that the regions of the Middle East, OECD Europe, Non-OECD Europe and Eurasia and Non-OECD Asia are in order the best target markets for Iranian natural gas.

JEL Classification: Q13, O24, N70

Keywords: Export, Target Markets, Numerical Taxonomy, Natural Gas