Islamabad/Ashgabat: Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif along with other regional leaders performed the ground-breaking ceremony of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project in Turkmenistan on Sunday.
The prime minister was joined by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimohamedow and Indian Vice President Muhammad Hamid Ansari for the groundbreaking ceremony.
The ground-breaking ceremony took place near the city of Mary in the southeastern part of the central Asian country, close to the giant Galkynysh gas field which is meant to provide gas for the 1,814-kilometre (1,127-mile) link.
“By December 2019, the pipeline will be completed. It will have a capacity of 33 billion cubic metres,” Turkmen President Kurbanguly Berdymukhamedov said at the ceremony.
The trans-regional energy project, which will bring gas from energy-rich Turkmenistan, is being dubbed as a major initiative for bringing peace and enhancing connectivity in the region. The $10 billion TAPI gas pipeline project is expected to be completed by 2018.
With the completion of this project Pakistan will get 1325MMCFD supply of natural gas as one of the main components of the mega-project linking Central Asian States with South Asian countries. The mega-project will also help Pakistan in overcoming its energy deficits.
Earlier today, the four leaders held a meeting to discuss the multibillion-dollar project, where they emphasized the need for enhanced connectivity for peace and stability in the region.
Prime Minister Sharif is in Turkmenistan on a two-day official visit where he also attended International Conference being held in Ashgabat to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Turkmenistan’s Permanent Neutrality.
In his address on Saturday, the prime minister emphatically stated that Pakistan attaches great importance to the TAPI project.
Pakistan is pursuing a policy of strong cooperation with regional countries, especially with next door neighbours, for prosperity and enhanced connectivity, he said.
Framework agreement signed
The $10 billion TAPI project is designed to reduce Turkmenistan’s dependence on gas sales to Russia and China.
TAPI’s construction is led by state gas firm Turkmengas and will cost as much as a third of Turkmenistan’s total 2016 budget. The Dubai-based Dragon Oil company, which produces oil off Turkmenistan’s Caspian coast, is also known to be in currently talks on TAPI. Russia’s state gas company Gazprom, the world’s biggest gas producer Gazprom was also looking to join the project in the past.
The Turkmen government also said on Sunday it had signed a “framework agreement” with a consortium of Japanese and Turkish companies to implement the third stage of expansion at Galkynysh that will boost the field’s output to 95 billion cubic metres (bcm) a year.
The consortium includes JGC Corporation, Mitsubishi, Itochu, Chiyoda and Sojitz of Japan as well as Calik Group of Companies and Ronesans Endustri Tesisleri of Turkey.
The Turkmen government did not disclose any other details such as the cost of expansion.
Read : Work on TAPI pipeline to begin in December
