Groundbreaking move: TAPI to supply fuel from Turkmenistan via Afghanistan, Pak
(From left): Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov press buttons for initiating welding process during the signing ceremony at Mary in Turkmenistan. PTI
Groundbreaking move: TAPI to supply fuel from Turkmenistan via Afghanistan, Pak
(From left): Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov press buttons for initiating welding process during the signing ceremony at Mary in Turkmenistan. PTI
Groundbreaking move: TAPI to supply fuel from Turkmenistan via Afghanistan, Pak
Mary (Turkmenistan), December 13
Vice-President Hamid Ansari,
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and leaders from Turkmenistan and
Afghanistan today broke the ground for the ambitious $7.6 billion gas pipeline
project which will provide India much-needed gas to run its power plants.
Ansari flew to the ancient city of
Mary, 311 km from capital Asghabat, which was part of the old Silk Route, to
attend the ground-breaking ceremony of the 1,800-km-long
Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline in the presence of
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his Turkmenistan counterpart Gurbanguly
Berdimuhamedow.
They pushed a button which started
the welding process of pipes. They later signed the pipe and signed a document,
which was put in a capsule and placed under the ground.
At the ceremony, Berdimuhamedow
hoped the project would get operationalised by December 2019. He said the
project proved Turkmenistan had the capacity to carry huge amounts of gas to
places where it was required.
The pipeline will have a capacity to
carry 90 million standard cubic metres a day (mmscmd) gas for a 30-year period.
India and Pakistan would get 38 mmscmd each, while the remaining 14 mmscmd will
be supplied to Afghanistan.
Turkmenistan’s state company Turkmengaz
will lead the consortium for building the pipeline carrying gas from the former
Soviet state to the three nations.
Turkmengaz will be the consortium
leader after foreign firms refused to participate in the project. French giant
Total SA had initially envisaged interest in leading a consortium of national
oil companies of the four nations in the project. But it backed off after
Turkmenistan refused to accept its condition of a stake in the gas field that
would feed the pipeline.
India's state gas utility GAIL has
signed a Gas Sales and Purchase Agreement (GSPA) with Turkmengaz for import of
38 mmscmd of natural gas for 30 years. But with Afghanistan agreeing to take
around 1.5-4 mmscmd against the original agreed volume of 14 mmscmd, the Indian
volumes may increase to 43-44.25 mmscmd.
The gas will be carried from
Turkmenistan's Galkynysh field, better known by its previous name South Yoiotan
Osman that holds gas reserves of 16 trillion cubic feet. From the field, the
pipeline will run to Herat and Kandahar province in Afghanistan, before
entering Pakistan. In Pakistan, it will reach Multan via Quetta before ending
at Fazilka (Punjab) in India.
Ansari, while terming the project as
a “reflection of desire” to the old-age legacy, warned all stakeholders that they
have to work with resolve to ensure “negative forces” inimical to the success
of the project were addressed in an appropriate manner.
“In doing so, we must recognise that
the forces of violence and disruption can no longer be allowed to threaten the
quest for economic development and security of our people. I am confident that
with the active engagement of all four governments, and the support of our
international partners, we can overcome such challenges.”
Ansari said the four nations needed
to work together to ensure the technical and commercial viability of the
project in its broadest sense.
“The international marketplace for
energy works on complex principles. Often these are difficult to fathom.
However, given the widespread poverty that exists in our countries, it is
essential to ensure that we can make energy available at the least possible
cost to the largest sections of our people,” he said.
Sharif said the project would prove
to be a trailblazer and open doors for similar such projects to connect Central
Asia with energy starved South Asia.
Terming regional connectivity as an
issue which was close to his heart, Sharif said it would help bring prosperity
and peace. He also urged other countries to participate in the China-Pakistan
economic corridor as it would help them connect with the ports of Pakistan for
greater economic activity.
Ghani said the groundbreaking
ceremony was a historic event as it had helped overcome history of doubts and
scepticism. He said the project would help reestablish ties as old as a million
years which were “ruptured” following the advent of the Soviet Union.
Ghani said against the backdrop of
success of the Paris climate talks, the four nations would have a positive
carbon footprint due to use of gas for energy production.
Besides the gas pipeline, the four
countries will be connected by fibreoptic cable, he said, adding a power
transmission line will also connect Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
TAPI will provide an alternative
supply source of gas with dependable reserves leading to enhanced energy
security.
It will further diversify the fuel
basket to the benefit of Indian economy, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
had recently said, adding the gas would be used mainly in power, fertiliser and
city gas sectors.
A security
consultant has recommended establishment of an inter-government joint security
task force (JSTF) to serve as the nucleus of the safety of the pipeline. — PTI
