ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said that steps be taken on immediate basis for early start of 1,680 kiolometers Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline.
After completion, the prject would be immensely beneficial in providing energy security to the region. Pakistan will get 1.32 billion cubic feet of gas per day (bcfd), while 1.32 bcfd to India and 0.5 bcfd gas to Afghanistan on daily basis. And, an Intergovernmental Agreement was signed in 2010 by head of states of all the TAPI members.
Though TAPI member countries have unanimously agreed to select French energy giant Total as consortium leader for financing a multi-billion-dollar TAPI gas pipeline project, yet Total was yet to finalise service agreement with Turkmenistan to extract gas, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif chairing 9th meeting of Cabinet Committee on Energy said.
The countries have unanimously agreed to make total as consortium leader for financing TAPI gas pipeline project starting from Central Asia during a meeting of steering committee held in the federal capital, sources said. They added the meeting agreed to take practical measures to start TAPI gas pipeline project on fast track basis, while construction of TAPI gas line project would take four years to complete.
