Plan for Joint Implementation of the TAPI of the Gas Pipeline

Pakistan and Turkmenistan signed a joint plan to implement the project for the construction of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) transnational gas pipeline on June 8, 2023. This decision is aimed at accelerating the completion of the feasibility study of the project and moving it towards the construction phase.  The ceremony of the document signing took place in Islamabad with the participation of Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Deputy Minister of Energy for the Oil Industry of Pakistan Musadiq Masud Malik and Minister of State of Turkmenistan, Chairman of the Turkmengaz State Concern Maksat Babayev. Having received the necessary approvals, project stakeholders will focus their attention on finalizing key project agreements, conducting land acquisition processes and developing project implementation strategies to ensure timely completion of the TAPI gas pipeline project (Onyango, 2023).

According to preliminary estimates, the total cost of the gas pipeline will be $8-10 billion (Tass.ru, 2023). The plan confirms the project’s goals, which include transporting natural gas from the Galkynysh gas field, and surrounding areas in Turkmenistan to energy-starved countries in South Asia, such as Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. The project aims to improve regional energy security, promote economic growth and develop regional cooperation. In accordance with the plan, a Senior Coordination Committee will be created, which includes representatives from Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. The committee will oversee and expedite project activities and address any issues that may arise.

The plan clearly sets out the responsibilities and tasks of the participating countries and relevant organizations. Major tasks include finalizing project agreements, conducting land acquisition processes, developing a TAPI safety concept, and formulating project implementation strategies. The plan serves as the basis for future binding agreements and has been approved by the Ministry of Law and Justice of Pakistan, ensuring its legal validity. The plan calls for the appointment of a coordinator from each participating country to facilitate effective communication and coordination. In the case of Pakistan, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Jehanzeb Khan has been nominated as the coordinator. The coordinators will play a critical role in leading the project implementation efforts from their respective countries. The plan emphasizes the importance of meeting deadlines and achieving project milestones. To achieve this, time frames will be established for the various project activities, allowing for effective monitoring of project progress. The plan underlines the commitment of the participating governments to support and facilitate the project. The document serves as a roadmap for the successful implementation of the TAPI gas pipeline project. It provides a comprehensive framework for coordination, collaboration, and timely completion of key activities (Caspianbarrel.org, 2023). It is also reported that discussions will be held at the ministerial level to study the possibility and mechanism for purchasing electricity from Turkmenistan and options for swap gas supplies from Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan will also be considered (Interfax.ru, 2023).

At a meeting with Babayev, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif emphasized that the gas pipeline will ensure energy security, economic growth and prosperity for Pakistan, as well as the entire region. He also mentioned that the TAPI project is evidence of strategic cooperation between Pakistan and Turkmenistan in the energy sector and announced that the countries have a strong desire to further develop mutually beneficial partnerships in economics and trade. On the other hand, Sharif suggested that Ashgabat explore the possibility of building a TAPI section from the Pakistani border to the port of Gwadar on the coast of the Arabian Sea, which would allow Turkmen gas to be supplied from there to Europe and world markets (Tass.ru, 2023).

The project is coordinated by the Asian Development Bank. The TAPI gas pipeline with a designed capacity of 33 billion cubic meters per year (14 billion m3/year each for Pakistan and India, and another 5 billion m3/year for Afghanistan) will run from the Galkynysh gas field in southern Turkmenistan through the Afghan cities of Herat and Kandahar, the Pakistani Quetta and Multan to the city of Fazilka in western India. The total length of TAPI will be 1.814 km, of which 214 km through the territory of Turkmenistan, 774 km through Afghanistan and 826 km through the territory of Pakistan to the border with India. The framework of the agreement on the gas pipeline was signed in 2010 and the construction of the pipeline began in 2015, but was suspended due to technical and financial reasons, as well as differences between India and Pakistan and the unstable situation in Afghanistan in 2021 (Yildirim, 2023).

The project is being implemented by the consortium TAPI Pipeline Co. Ltd, in which the main participant is Turkmengaz (85% of shares). The Afghan Gas Corporation, the Pakistani Inter State Gas Systems (Private) Ltd and the Indian GAIL each have 5% in the consortium (Interfax.ru, 2023).

Back in 2008, specialists called the TAPI project unrealizable due to instability in Afghanistan. Construction of the Turkmen section of TAPI started in December 2015 and is now almost completed. On February 23, 2018, the laying of the Afghan section of the gas pipeline took place. In September 2020, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan signed a memorandum on the selection of land plots for the TAPI route. Pipe laying in Afghanistan was planned to begin in 2021. In May 2018, the construction site of the Afghan section of the TAPI project was attacked by militants. In 2021, after the Taliban regime came to power in Afghanistan, they repeatedly gave security guarantees at the stage of construction and gas supplies via TAPI. Negotiations to resume construction began periodically, but in practice, the project did not resume. On September 27, 2022, Abdul Ghani Baradar, 2nd Deputy Prime Minister of Afghanistan, stated that Afghanistan is ready to initiate the TAPI gas pipeline project and that current conditions have created suitable opportunities, and the authorities are committed to any form of cooperation in this area (Goncharenko, 2023).

In October 2023, the Pakistani authorities also advocated for the timely completion of the project. In addition, Russian manufacturers of pipe products have expressed their readiness to join the construction of the Afghan section of the TAPI international pipeline. In December 2017, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov telephoned Russian President Vladimir Putin and invited Russia to participate in the project. Experts believe that the participation of the Russian Federation will improve the chances of the TAPI project. Meanwhile, Iran has offered Russia and Turkmenistan an alternative option for gas supplies to Pakistan, which in the future will open access to the Indian gas market (Goncharenko, 2023).

The TAPI project, which started in 2010, could not be implemented due to technical, security, financial and conflict between countries problems. After 13 years, the Taliban came to power in Afghanistan, guaranteed the safe passage of the pipeline through their territory and expressed their desire to implement it, and the parties came together again and revived the pipeline project. This time, the project in question is based on a more solid foundation by providing a common plan for implementation and focusing on the missing issues. For this reason, it is possible to say that the TAPI project will be implemented in practice, not as a project.

References:

Caspianbarrels.org (2023). Pakistan and Turkmenistan signed a joint plan for the accelerated implementation of TAPI. Retrieved from https://caspianbarrel.org/en/2023/06/pakistan-and-turkmenistan-signed-a-joint-plan-for-the-accelerated-implementation-of-tapi/. Accessed on 11.02.2024.

Goncharenko, Alexey (2023).  Pakistan and Turkmenistan signed a plan for the implementation of the construction of the TAPI international gas pipeline. Retrieved from https://neftegaz.ru/news/transport-and-storage/782756-pakistan-i-turkmeniya-podpisali-plan-realizatsii-stroitelstva-mgp-tapi/. Accessed on: 11.02.2024.

Interfax.ru (2023). Afghan authorities decided to buy land for the TAPI gas pipeline project. Retrieved from https://www.interfax.ru/world/926301. Accessed on 11.02.2024.

Onyango, Daniel (2023). Pakistan and Turkmenistan sign a joint implementation plan for the TAPI gas pipeline project. Retrieved from https://www.pipeline-journal.net/news/pakistan-and-turkmenistan-sign-joint-implementation-plan-tapi-gas-pipeline-project. Accessed on 11.02.2024.

Tass.ru (2023). Pakistan and Turkmenistan signed an implementation plan for the construction of the TAPI gas pipeline. Retrieved from https://tass.ru/ekonomika/17970585. Accessed on 11.02.2024.

Yildirim, Alper (2023). The idea of transmitting Central Asian energy through Afghanistan: TAPI natural gas pipeline project. Retrieved from https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/2929661. Accessed on 11.02.2024.

Note: The views expressed in this blog are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the Institute’s editorial policy.