Iran threatens to exclude India from Iran - Pakistan - India gas pipeline deal

27 September 2007

Mumbai: Iran has threatened to sign a gas pipeline deal with Pakistan alone if India did not conclude transit pricing agreement with Islamabad soon, even as India remained absent at the ongoing secretary-level talks on the project.

India, however, said it remained committed to the deal despite not attending the current round of talks in Tehran.

Discussions on the $7.4-billion project, which would bring Iranian gas to India via Pakistan, have been held up over technical and commercial issues.

Officials from Iran and Pakistan are currently holding a new round of talks aimed at finalising the long-delayed pipeline.

India remained absent at the talks as New Delhi and Islamabad have failed to arrive at an agreement over the payment of transit fees by India to Pakistan.

"We prefer it to be a tripartite deal, but if it does not happen we will sign it with the Pakistanis," caretaker oil minister Gholam Hossein Nozari said, adding that the door is still open to India.