KABUL: The $10 billion Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project would be completed in the next five years, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) hopes.
Dogged by security concerns, the flagship regional connectivityproject will transfer 33 billion cubic feet of gas from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan and India. The ADB has offered $600 million for the scheme.
“Each member countryhas established a project company by contributing initial money of $200 million, which will pave the way for the construction of the 800-km pipeline,”said the ADB’s director-general for Central and West Asia Department.
Sean M. O’ Sullivan told journalists on the sidelines of the 49th annual meeting of the Manila based bank in Frankfurt on Wednesday the ADB would supplement the CASA-1000MW project, from which it had pulled out in 2009.
Afghanistan had paid its equity share for establishing the TAPI project company, he said, adding a major challenge would be ensuring security in the region. However, he sounded confident of the concerns being addressed.
The ADBhas been selected as transaction advisor.Turkmenistan is already working on the project, whose design will be completed soon. The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has also committed $800 million.
