President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov discussed joint energy projects with Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif who was on an official visit to Ashgabat on May 20. According to a statement of the Turkmen Foreign Ministry, during the meeting they discussed vital issues of the regional and international politics.
One of the subjects for discussion was implementation of the transnational Turkmenistan-Afghanistan – Pakistan – India (TAPI) gas pipeline. The parties agreed that implementation of the TAPI project would secure further economic growth and social wealth in the region and become a strong security factor and driver for sustainable development.
The official Ashgabat believes that construction of the pipeline can start as early as this year. A consortium called TAPI Ltd has been established already, purchase-and-sale contracts for the Turkmen are signed, the only thing to do is to select the major company in the consortium. It will have a number of preferences.
According to the project, the pipeline will be of a 1800-km length, its annual capacity will be 33 bn cubic meters of gas within 30 years. The construction is expected to cost $$10-12 bn, its key markets are to be India and Pakistan, they will be supplied with 14 bn cu m of gas each, while the transit-country, Afghanistan, will have 5 bn cu m. The Galkynysh gas field is to be the source for the projects. According to Ashgabat’s assessments, it is one of the largest in the world.