ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s Foreign Office Spokesman Mohammad Faisal said along-awaited gas pipeline project between Iran and Pakistan is still inplace amid reports that Islamabad has been under pressure to follow otheroptions, including a pipeline from Turkmenistan, nicknamed TAPI.link>
“To the best of my knowledge, the IP gas pipeline project is still on. Fortechnical details, the concerned ministry can be contacted,” Faisal wasquoted by The Nation as saying on Saturday.
His remark came after Afghanistan on Friday broke ground on a 1,127-mile‘peace pipeline’, a $22.5 billion natural gas pipeline crossing thecountry’s war-ravaged south.
Leaders and ministers from Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Indiaattending the groundbreaking ceremony on Friday in Herat described hopesthat trade and mutual economic benefit could overcome old conflicts.
The pipeline, known as TAPI for its route through Turkmenistan,Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, taking in some of the world’s mostcontested land, is an experiment in pipeline diplomacy of a type consideredbut ultimately rejected in other hot spots like on the Korean Peninsula.
The project has been touted as a rival to the Iran plan (Iran-Pakistan gaspipeline) and drawn support from the US and Saudi Arabia.
Recently, Turkmen Deputy Prime Minister Maksat Babayev announced that SaudiArabia would make considerable investments in the construction of theTurkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.
In late January, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zangeneh said Pakistan was notcooperating on the construction of the IP gas pipeline.
“Pakistan has been falling short and is not cooperating on the constructionof the pipeline,” he said.
“It is likely that the US and Saudi Arabia have been doing some sort ofsabotage,” the minister added.
Iran has repeatedly called on the energy-starved Pakistan to initiate workon its part of the gas pipeline, but those pleas have fallen on deaf earsexcept for pledges from some Pakistan officials that they were stillcommitted to the project.
Tehran is already selling 1,000 megawatts of electricity to Pakistan andplans to increase this up to 3,000 megawatts, according to IranianPresident Hassan Rouhani.
The energy crisis in Pakistan, which suffers about 12 hours of power cuts aday, has worsened in recent years amid 4,000 megawatts of electricityshortfall. The nation of 190 million people can only supply abouttwo-thirds of its gas needs.