Pakistan has signed a joint implementation plan with Turkmenistan to execute the planned Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, reported ARY News.
In December 2010, an inter-government agreement and gas pipeline framework agreements were signed between the four countries for the development of the pipeline.
Construction work on the proposed project started in 2015. However, instability in Afghanistan led to little progress on the pipeline work.
The TAPI project involves the construction of approximately 1,800km of pipeline from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India to export up to 33 billion cubic metres of natural gas per year.
It will transport gas produced from the Galkynysh gas field in Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said: “Pakistan and Turkmenistan are ready to expand their economic cooperation, and TAPI will help secure a natural gas supply for the country, with concrete guarantees and mutually agreed terms and conditions.”
Expected to have an operational life of 30 years, the project is being developed by a consortium, TAPI Pipeline Company Limited, reported Press Trust of India.
The consortium comprises Turkmenistan’s Turkmengaz, Afghan Gas of Afghanistan, Pakistan-based Interstate Gas Service, and India’s Gas Authority of India and Indian Oil.
Last year, Pakistan Refinery selected Wood Group UK for front-end engineering design for its refinery expansion and upgrade project (REUP).
The REUP aims to double Pakistan Refinery’s crude processing capacity from 50,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) to 100,000bopd.
