Tapi steering body meeting in Delhi on April 3

[LahoreEstate]

Tapi steering body meeting in Delhi on April 3
RECORDER REPORT
ISLAMABAD (March 12 2009): Turkmenistan is expected to submit the audit report about its gas reserves in the meeting of the steering committee, likely to be held on April 3 in New Delhi, on Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project. Sources told Business Recorder that ADB, the main sponsor of the project, has proposed the meeting of the steering committee.

Petroleum Secretary Mahmood Saleem also confirmed to media persons after attending the International Conference and Exhibition on LPG that a meeting on TAPI would be held next month, but did not mention the date. He expressed hope that President Asif Ali Zardaris visit to Iran would bring good news regarding the Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) gas pipeline project.

Turkmenistan has claimed that it has gas reserves of 8 trillion cubic metres, but Pakistan and India wanted certification about the gas reserves before further moving on TAPI gas pipeline project. Under the project, Turkmenistan will supply 3.2 bcfd gas and Pakistan, Afghanistan and India would share it.

Last steering committee meeting on TAPI was held in Islamabad on April 21-24 2008 and Turkmenistan pledged to submit the audit report on certification of gas reserves by September 30, 2008. During the meeting Petroleum Ministers of Pakistan and India had expressed concern about not submitting gas reserves certification in the meeting and asked Turkmenistan to submit the report to make progress for signing gas sales purchase agreement (GSPA) after the concluding session of the coming steering committee meeting.

Due to delay in the TAPI gas pipeline project its cost is being escalated and ADB representative in a meeting of steering committee on TAPI held last year had estimated the cost of the project at $7.6 billion, against the earlier projected $3.3 billion in 2004.

The steering committee in its coming meeting will discuss pricing mechanism of gas, transit fee and security situation in Afghanistan. The landmines in Afghanistan are also a big hurdle in laying the pipeline and during last years meeting Afghanistan was given two years to clear all landmines on the proposed route of Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.

http://www.brecorder.com/index.php?id=54...=&supDate=