Sunday, Feb 23, 2003
India invited to join Afghan pipeline project
By B. Muralidhar Reddy
ISLAMABAD Feb. 22. The Petroleum Ministers of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkmenistan today formally invited India to join the $ multi-billion pipeline to carry Turkmenistan's natural gas to the Indian Ocean via Afghanistan and Pakistan.
A decision to this effect was taken at the meeting of the Ministerial Committee for the Trans-Afghan Gas Pipeline (TAP) here. "It was agreed during the Steering Committee Meeting that the parties acting jointly, would formally forward the documents of the TAP to the Government of India, inviting it to join the project,'' said a statement issued after the fourth meeting of the Steering Committee.
The 1,500 km pipeline is to cross through Afghanistan, connecting the gas field in southern Turkmenistan to the city of Multan in central Pakistan. It is estimated to cost $3.2 billion. Experts believe that without the participation of India, TAP would not be economically viable.
Today's meeting is a follow-up to the one of the heads of the Governments of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkmenistan in the last week of December where they signed the `framework agreement' on a gas pipeline.
However there are serious concerns on the viability of the project. The focus is once again on stability and security in Afghanistan that holds the key for the project to become a reality. The recent explosion at a gas pipeline in Pakistan has added a new dimension.
The $3.2 billion project, envisaging pumping of gas from Turkmenistan's Dauletabad-Donmez field to Pakistan and possibly further down to India, has enthused several giant companies particularly from the United States but ground conditions in Afghanistan have proved to be the biggest stumbling block.
As and when erected the proposed pipeline would carry up to 20 billion cubic metres (700 billion cubic feet) of gas a year. Besides security other issues related to the project including financing are yet to be worked out. Currently the ADB is conducting a series of studies and has bids out for companies that will conduct a major feasibility study next year.
The pipeline was originally launched in 1997 by a consortium led by the U.S. energy giant Unocal Corp. but abandoned after the United States fired Cruise missiles into Afghanistan in 1998 in pursuit of Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network.
The project if implemented has great potential for the economic development of the region and pave way for similar pipelines.
According to estimates Afghanistan could rake up $300 million per annum in royalties through the project.
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