Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, June 4
By Huseyn Hasanov- Trend:
President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has signed a decree on the allocation of more than $45 million to finance the initial stage of construction of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India Natural Gas Pipeline (TAPI) at the Afghan-Pakistan segment, the Turkmen government said in a message June 4.
The document was adopted in accordance with the investment agreement signed in May 2016 between the Turkmengaz State Concern and Gail (India) Limited, Inter State Gas Systems (Private) Limited (Pakistan), Afghan Gas Enterprise (Afghanistan), TAPI Pipeline Company Limited and Galkynysh Pipeline Company CJSC.
Representatives of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB), the Saudi Fund for Development and the Japanese government have expressed intention to participate in financing construction of the TAPI gas pipeline.
Three main areas for participation by potential foreign investors in the project are considered: trade, supply of pipe and gas equipment; financing through provision of loans; and investment in the TAPI project and in development of the big Galkynysh gas field in Turkmenistan.
Turkmengaz and Turkmenneftegazstroy state concerns since December 2015 have been carrying out construction of the 214-kilometer pipeline segment in Turkmenistan, from the Galkynysh field to the Afghan border.
The contractors for construction of the pipeline segments in Afghanistan and Pakistan will be chosen through international tenders.
The main document for the TAPI, called the Ashgabat Interstate Agreement, was signed in 2010.
The groundbreaking ceremony for TAPI's Turkmen section was held in mid-December of 2015.
The estimated cost of the project will exceed $10 billion. The annual capacity of the gas pipeline will reach 33 billion cubic meters. It is planned that the total length of the TAPI pipeline will be 1,814 kilometers. Some 214 kilometers will pass through the territory of Turkmenistan, 774 kilometers - Afghanistan, 826 kilometers - Pakistan.
The project is expected to be completed in late 2019.