NEW DELHI, 14 July 2005 — India and Pakistan yesterday finalized a broad framework to boost cooperation and pledged “serious commitment” to a $4.5 billion Iran-India gas pipeline that would pass through Pakistan. The first Indo-Pak joint working meeting dealing with the gas pipeline project set the end of the year as a deadline for a final agreement on the tri-national venture.
A joint statement issued at the end of two days of talks in New Delhi between Indian and Pakistani oil officials said technical, financial, commercial and legal aspects were discussed about the pipeline expected to be operational by 2010.
“Both sides conveyed their serious commitment to address various issues pertaining to the project so as to maintain the momentum of the dialogue,” the statement said.
Once these issues had been satisfactorily resolved, the three countries involved in the project would enter into a ‘framework agreement’, it added.
The two sides will meet again in August to thrash out remaining issues, including the pricing of gas, funding and legal aspects.
The two sides agreed to appoint separate financial consultants to advise on the project structure before signing an inter-government agreement that would allow work to begin early next year.
Briefing reporters on the significance of the project, Pakistan’s Oil Secretary Ahmed Waqar said: “This project is essential for ensuring sustainable and affordable energy to both the countries and for meeting the requirement of high economic growth rate.” During the two-day discussions, the two sides laid down a framework for further negotiations on the project, Waqar said.
Reading from the joint statement, Indian Petroleum Secretary S.C. Tripathi said: “The two sides agreed that they shared an immediate commonality of interest in regard to the technical aspects of the project such as the size and specifications of the pipeline, the quality of gas, the quantum of gas required by the two countries and the build-up period.”
Indian Petroleum Secretary S.C. Tripathi said that agreement had been reached on basic issues such as the technology to be used for gas supply and the quality of the hydrocarbon they want to import.
Waqar said he was hopeful the project would be ready by 2010, when an energy shortage was expected in Pakistan.
His country, he added, was looking to import 10 million standard cubic meters per day (MMS CCD) of gas from Iran from 2010 and increase it to 60 million MMS CCD in the succeeding five years. India would begin with 60 MMS CMD of gas and increase imports to 90 MMS CMD within three years.
Tripathi said the three countries would hold bilateral talks with each other first before elevating discussions to the level of a multi-forum dialogue ahead of the pipeline’s rollout.
India also discussed with Pakistan plans by both countries to import gas from Turkmenistan via Afghanistan and from Qatar.
— With input from Agencies
