US says pleased with TAPI agreement

The US has said it is pleased with a recent agreement on an ambitious four-nation gas pipeline involving India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Turkmenistan, hoping that the multi-billion-dollar project would change the face of the economic condition of the region.

"We are pleased with the initial agreements that have been signed on the TAPI (Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India) project," the State Department said.

"It is important to remember that pipelines are long-term projects with long-term horizons, and that the immense effort involved could produce long-term benefits for Turkmenistan and the region," it said.

TAPI's route may serve as a stabilising corridor, linking neighbours together in economic growth and prosperity, it said.

"The road ahead is long for this project, but the benefits could be tremendous," the State Department said in response to a question.

India, on December 11, signed agreements to import natural gas from Turkmenistan through an ADB-based $7.6 billion gas pipeline passing through Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Oil Minister Murli Deora inked the Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) and the Gas Pipeline Framework Agreement for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline in Ashgabat in Turkmenistan.

"Today is a very important day, not just for India, but for all the countries (in the TAPI project)," he had said at the signing ceremony attended by Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Turkmenistan President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.

The agreements are commitments of the four nations to building the project even as New Delhi voiced concerns over safe delivery of gas through the pipeline that would pass through Taliban's stronghold of Kandahar in Afghanistan and then into Pakistan's restive tribal areas.

"There are issues that need to be addressed. We have to come to a decision regarding the price of gas, security of the pipeline, certainty of the gas supply, transit fee and setting up of the consortium (to build the pipeline)," Deora had said.

The rival Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline has been on drawing boards for more than a decade, mostly because of security concern over safe passage of gas in Pakistani territory.

"Quite obviously, our goal is not merely the construction of the pipeline, but also continuous and uninterrupted flow of Turkmen natural gas over several decades," Deora had said.

The IGA signed "offers guarantee for the security and safety of the pipeline as also of the personnel involved in the project," he had said. "We take this guarantee as a solemn promise from the government of Afghanistan and Pakistan and this gives us the confidence to go ahead with the project."

The TAPI pipeline has been proposed to transport gas from the gas fields in Turkmenistan to India through Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a Lead Development Partner of the Project.

The total length of the pipeline passing through Afghanistan and Pakistan is 1,650 kilometers before entering India at Fazilka, Punjab.

As per the plan, 38 million standard cubic metres per day of gas would go to India and Pakistan, each while 14 mmscmd would be bought by Afghanistan.