Turkmenistan’s President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov received Pakistani Petroleum and Natural Resources Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Turkmen government said on July 10.
“Highlighting the topicality and timeliness of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) transcontinental gas pipeline’s construction, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi confirmed Pakistan’s interest in a speedy realization of the project that will undoubtedly promote the development of a constructive intergovernmental cooperation in the gas sector,” according to a message from the Turkmen government.
President Berdimuhamedov, for his part, said the construction of the gas pipeline, which will in the near future provide long-term supplies of Turkmen natural gas to South-East Asia, is another step towards realization of Turkmenistan’s energy strategy that is aimed at creating a multi-vector system of energy resource deliveries to the world’s largest markets.
Pakistani minister also touched upon the wide attention of the world business community, and particularly, the large foreign companies and potential investors in the new energy route project.
“Obviously, we can already talk about an effective consolidating and stabilizing factor of the TAPI project, which in the future can have a positive impact on the situation in the Central, and South Asia, and the entire region, and bring additional stability to the entire system of political and economic ties in the continent,” Turkmen government said.
Turkmenistan previously said the TAPI’s construction is to begin in 2015.
The Ashgabat interstate agreement to launch the TAPI project’s practical implementation is the fundamental document for promoting this project.
The agreement was signed by the TAPI participating states in 2010.
TAPI’s design capacity is up to 33 billion cubic meters of gas per year.
Sales and purchase agreements (SPA) were signed with Indian GAIL Ltd and the State Gas Systems of Pakistan in May 2012. Another SPA was signed with the Afghanistan’s Gas Corporation in July 2013.
A service agreement was signed with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in November 2013.
TAPI gas pipeline’s total length will be 1,735 kilometres. Some 200 kilometres of the pipeline will run through Turkmenistan, 735 kilometres – through Afghanistan, and 800 kilometres – through Pakistan up to the Fazilka settlement on the Indian border.
Galkynysh – the largest field in Turkmenistan – can serve as a raw material source for TAPI.
Turkmen media earlier said that such companies as Chevron, ExxonMobil, BP, BG Group, RWE, Petronas and others familiarized with TAPI and “expressed an intention to take part in it.”
