India joins Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline project

24 April 2008

Mumbai: India has joined the four-nation gas pipeline project that will transport up to 90 MMSCMD of natural gas from gas fields in Turkmenistan via Afghanistan and Pakistan to India. 

India was formally admitted to the  Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project at the tenth steering committee meeting held on 23-24 April, at Pakistan's capital Islamabad.

The 1,680 km TAPI pipeline, covering a length of 145 km, 735 km and 800 km, respectively, in Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan up to the Indian border, will supply 90 MMSCMD of gas.

Afghanistan will utilise about to 5.0 MMSCMD of gas during first and second year and 14 MMSCMD from the third year onwards while the remaining quantity of gas will be equally shared by India and Pakistan.

Minister of petroleum and natural gas Murli Deora represented India at the meeting in Islamabad which adopted an inter-governmental framework agreement to facilitate implementation of the project.

The next meeting of the steering committee will be held in India.