ISLAMABAD (NNI) - The Economic Coordination Committee’s Steering Committee on Iran-Pakistan (IP) and Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline projects on Thursday reaffirmed its commitment to go ahead with these major gas projects.
Dr. Asim Hussain, Federal Minister for Petroleum & Natural Resources, chaired the meeting Thursday, which was attended by Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Mohammad Aslam Khan Raisani, Chairman Federal Board of Revenue, Chairman Board of Investment, Secretary Finance Division, Acting Chairman OGRA, Chairman EOBI, MD PARCO, representatives of Law Division, Planning Commission, National Bank of Pakistan and senior officers of Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Resources.
Secretary Petroleum Muhammad Ejaz Chaudhry briefed the committee regarding progress made on IP and TAPI projects. Managing Director Inter State Gas Company Ltd. (ISGCL) Mobin Saulat gave a detailed presentation on appointment of financial advisor, implementation of Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline Project, security of IP pipeline during route survey and construction, and signing of TAPI Gas Sale Purchase Agreement (GSPA).
Members of the EEC’s Steering Committee agreed in principle to recommend the proposals regarding implementation of IP and TAPI gas pipeline projects to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) and appointment of financial consultants. These proposals include government backed guarantees, model of financial consultancy and gas pricing formula for both pipeline projects.
Dr Asim Hussain thanked all the members for attending the meeting and emphasized that both IP and TAPI projects are of prime importance for Pakistan and are essential for meeting energy demands of the country. On this occasion, he urged that the precious natural resources like oil and gas must be conserved in order to achieve sustainable development, and all the stakeholders should cooperate in implementing gas load management program.