Pakistan Starts Construction of IP Gas Pipeline
Iranian and Pakistani oil ministers inaugurated construction of the 781 km of Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline in Pakistan's soil on Wednesday.
An Iranian-Pakistani joint contractor has been commissioned to begin construction of the IP gas pipeline.
Yesterday, Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qassemi and Managing Director of the National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) Javad Oji arrived in Pakistan to hold the final talks on the IP gas pipeline construction.
The Iranian oil minister and his accompanying delegation agreed with their Pakistani counterpart to set up a joint contracting company between the two countries in a bid to complete the construction of the IP gas pipeline in next 15 months. The mega project will come on stream in December 2014.
The IP gas pipeline stretches from Iran-Pakistan border to Navabshah region in Pakistan and it covers 781 km of the total 1,881 km of the pipeline.
Apart from it, both countries also discussed the finances involved in the project. The interest rate for Iran's 500-million-dollar loan to Pakistan and the date for the start of the repayment of the loan by Pakistan were among other topics in the discussions.
Last week, Tehran and Islamabad discussed the scope of work under the mega project of $1.5 billion IP gas line.
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari underlined his support for the completion of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline which will help soothe Pakistan's energy crisis.
Zardari said that Pakistan attaches great importance to early completion of Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline project in view of the energy crisis in the country, and called for stepped up efforts for early completion of all Pak-Iran bilateral projects.
Demand for natural gas in Pakistan has outstripped supply in recent years, putting existing reserves under immense pressure.
The 2700-kilometer long pipeline was to supply gas for Pakistan and India which are suffering a lack of energy sources, but India has evaded talks. In 2011, Iran and Pakistan declared they would finalize the agreement bilaterally if India continued to be absent in the meeting.
According to the project proposal, the pipeline will begin from Iran's Assalouyeh Energy Zone in the south and stretch over 1,100 km through Iran. In Pakistan, it will pass through Baluchistan and Sindh but officials now say the route may be changed if China agrees to the project.
The gas will be supplied from the South Pars gas field in the Iranian southern province of Bushehr. The initial capacity of the pipeline will be 22 billion cubic meters of natural gas per annum, which is expected to be later raised to 55 billion cubic meters.
Iran has already built more than 900 kilometers of the pipeline on its soil.
Source: farsnews.com
