ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, April 29. Turkmenistan is ready to accelerate the implementation of the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) project through closer cooperation with partners, Trend reports.
Muhammetmyrat Amanov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of TAPI Pipeline Company Ltd., made the statement at the International Forum to Attract Foreign Investments in Turkmenistan's Energy Sector, which is being held in Paris.
He stated that the current priority objective is to construct a segment of the gas pipeline from Turkmenistan's border to the Afghan Herat district, which will signal the start of gas shipments to Afghanistan and boost investor trust in the project.
"Turkmengaz State Concern is negotiating with foreign oil and gas companies on their participation in the implementation of TAPI and the development of one of the world's largest Galkynysh gas fields, which is the resource base of the project. The agreement of the host country with Pakistan is in the final stage," he stressed.
It is expected that the TAPI gas pipeline will annually transport 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas along an 1800-kilometer route from Turkmen Galkynysh, the second largest gas field in the world, to the Indian city of Fazilka, located near the border of India with Pakistan.
The TAPI Gas Pipeline, also known as the Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline, is a natural gas pipeline being built by Galkynysh - TAPI Pipeline Company Limited, with Asian Development Bank assistance. The pipeline will deliver natural gas from Turkmenistan's Galkynysh Gas Field through Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. Construction on the project began in Turkmenistan on December 13, 2015, with the Afghanistan-Pakistan segment of the pipeline beginning in February 2018. Proponents of the project envision it as a modernized version of the Silk Road.