Turkmenistan-India gas pipeline talks revive as Taliban fall

Ulhas Joglekar uvj at vsnl.com
Tue Feb 5 04:18:18 PST 2002


From: Vikash Yadav
> I don't think this idea sounds feasible at all. The reason that an
overland
> pipeline to India won't be built is quite simple: Pakistan. It does not
> matter who is in charge in Afghanistan or what the US wants. There is
just
> no way that India is going to allow itself to become dependent upon an
> energy source that runs through the territory of its mortal enemy.

Yes, the idea does not sound feasible in the present conjucture. If the South Asian Free Trade comes into existence in next decade, the situation could change significantly.


>I am also dubious of the notion that the new regime in Afghanistan
> will remain friendly for very long with Pakistan (Isn't Hamid Karzai a
> graduate of Indian colleges?).

It appears that Karzai does not have much power or influence. He is seen as a figurehead. Hostile relationship with Pakistan is not among the immediate priorities of the Afghan government. US does not want Afghan-Pakistan conflict in any case.


> For some time there have been discussions about building either an
overland
> (~$3 billion) or deep underwater (~$30 billion) pipeline from the Persian
> Gulf to Bombay.

I am not sure if the cost of underwater pipeline is as high as $30 bn.


>As long as hostilities remain a fact of
> life on the sub-continent India will have to rely on getting gas and oil
> from tankers.

There are alternatives: Bangladesh is said to be sitting on top of huge gas reserves. Unocal has proposed a gas pipeline between Dhaka and New Delhi. Myanmar is being identified as another source for India.

Ulhas



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list