November 6, 2002	Wednesday	Sha’aban 30,1423

KARACHI, Nov 5: Managing director, Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGC), Munnawar Baseer Ahmed, on Tuesday said a summit meeting between presidents of Pakistan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan was expected to be held in a month to discuss the Pakistan-Turkmenistan gas pipeline project.

Addressing a press conference at the SSGC head office, he said an inter-ministerial meeting was held on Monday in this regard to review the progress of the project.

Currently, he said a draft of memorandum of understanding (MoU) and project agreements were being prepared in which various issues were also being considered.

The length of the gas pipeline with a diameter of 48 inches is 1,400 km long with a capacity of two billion cubic feet per day.

Turkmenistan has proven gas reserves of 101 trillion cubic feet and production is estimated at 790 billion cubic feet. Turkmenistan can export 590 bcf of gas.

The Asian Development Bank is reported to have been agreed as main financier for the pipeline project besides others. Turkmenistan is one of potential gas import sources countries after Iran and Qatar.

Iran has proven gas reserves of 812 tcf with production of 1,900 bcf, while Qatar’s proven gas reserves and production are estimated at 300 tcf and 690 bcf, respectively.

Baseer said the government was looking forward for gas imports. For this purpose, the Interstate Gas Systems Private Limited (ISGSL), an SSGC and Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) subsidiary, is examining various gas import options and its activities are expected to increase manifold in the foreseeable future.

Pakistan would require imported gas in the next five to six years and the ISGSL is looking after possibilities to import gas from Qatar, Iran and Turkmenistan.

He said ISGSL’s mandate also included exploring overseas business opportunities in the gas sector.

The SSGC managing director said sufficient potential existed in UAE, Qatar, Nigeria, the Middle East, Oman and Kuwait for infrastructure development projects, particularly after Sept 11 incidents, which had restricted the movement of foreign experts to undertake such projects in these countries.

SSGC is already in close contact with these countries, besides working in some countries for infrastructure development as Pakistan enjoys upper hand in this field as compared with neighbouring countries, particularly India.