ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and Turkmenistan Thursday signed a Joint Implementation Plan (JIP) for TAPI Gas Pipeline and also constituted senior Coordination Council to accelerate the project’s agreements.
The JIP was signed by Minister of State for Petroleum Dr. Musadik Malik from the Pakistani side and Mr. Maksat Babayev, State Minister and Head of TurkmenGaz, signed the document from the Turkmen side.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif witnessed the signing ceremony while senior cabinet functionaries, representatives from Petroleum Division and Inter State Gas Systems Pvt. Ltd. were present on the occasion.
The accord was signed at the end of a two-day visit to Pakistan by a high ranking Turkmenistan delegation headed by Maksat Babayev, State Minister and Head of TurkmenGaz, Deputy Minister of Energy Annageldi Saparov, CEO and Chairman of BOD, TPCL, Muhammetmyrat Amanov. Turkmen Ambassador to Pakistan, Atadjan Movlamov also accompanied the delegation.
Pakistan also invited Turkmen side to explore alternate gas supplies from Chaman to Gwadar and LNG infrastructure investment.
The JIP envisages the constitution of a Senior Coordination Committee (SCC) to expedite and oversee the project activities. The Prime Minister nominated Special Assistant to Prime Minister Dr. Jehanzeb Khan to work as focal person from the Pakistan side as the head of the Senior Coordination Committee. Government of Pakistan also invited Turkmenistan to explore gas connectivity from Chaman border to Gwadar and building LNG terminals at Gwadar, which would expand supplies to Europe and global LNG markets.
The TAPI gas pipeline project aims to bring natural gas from the Galkynysh gas field in Turkmenistan to Pakistan through Afghanistan.
