TAPI gas project delayed by one year

Turkmengas fails to attain financial close in Dec 2016

ISLAMABAD: The $10 billion TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanis-tan-Pakistan-India) gas pipeline has been delayed by one year as it was earlier scheduled to be operational in 2019 but on account of delay in achieving financial closure, the pipeline will get the first gas blow from Turkmenistan in 2020.

“Turkmengas Company was earlier scheduled to achieve financial close of the mega project by December 2016, but now it is supposed to attain it in June 2017. This has actually delayed the commissioning of the project till 2020,” a top official of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources told The News.

When contacted, managing director of the Inter-State Gas System confirmed it and said the project will now come on stream in 2020. He, however, refused to divulge more details. According to the officials of the ministry, the Turkmengas Company, being the consortium leader for TAPI project, is to contribute up to 85 percent of equity, and the rest of TAPI members namely Afghanistan, Pakistan and India would take 5 percent each equity share in the project company. From the Gylkynish and adjacent gas fields in Turkmenistan, the gas will be imported to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.

Meanwhile, a top-level delegation from Turkmenistan is due in the current month that will hold a series of meetings with Pakistan’s security agencies to thrash out a plan ensuring security of the mega project of the TAPI pipeline. 

Both sides of the agencies will discuss the route of the pipeline in detail and carve out arrangements to provide foolproof safety to the pipeline that will enter from Chaman and pass through Zhob, Dera Ismail Khan, Quetta, Multan and touch upon Fazilka -- a city at Indian border which is 150 kilometres away from Multan. From Fazilka, the pipeline will enter India. Some four months ago, security officials of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan held crucial parleys for the safety of the part of pipeline that will pass through the territory of Afghanistan.

Under the project, Pakistan and India will be provided 1.325 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) gas each and Afghanistan will be getting the share of 0.5 bcfd gas under this mega project. The ADB is acting as facilitator and coordinator for the project. The feasibility study proposed to lay a 56-inch diameter 1,680 kilometres pipeline with design capacity of 3.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per annum from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan and Pakistan up to Pak-India border. The TAPI pipeline will be laid down through the proposed route starting from Herat-Kandahar-Chaman-Zhob-DG Khan-Multan and reach Fazilka.