Reserves certification termed vital for talks: Turkmenistan gas pipeline project
By Khaleeq Kiani
ISLAMABAD, Nov 9: Pakistan believes that further discussions on the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) natural gas pipeline project cannot take place unless it is provided with reserve certification report on the Daulatabad gas field.
Officials said Pakistan has expressed its inability to hold the TAP steering committee meeting in the next two months and has called for the gas field's reserves certification before the next meeting.
Sources told Dawn that the 8th meeting of the TAP steering committee was originally scheduled to be held in October but was delayed. Later, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) had proposed to hold the meeting on Nov 29-30 in Islamabad.
"It is regretted that it will not be possible to convene the meeting on Nov 29-30, 2004" because of commitments of the minister for petroleum and natural resources, an official of the ministry quoted from a letter written to the director of the energy division of the ADB.
In view of the minister's other pressing engagements, Pakistan has proposed that the steering committee meeting be held some time later in January or early February 2005 subject to the convenience of the Afghan and Turkmen oil ministers.
"In the meanwhile, the position regarding Reserve Certification report on Daulatabad gas field may please be provided," said the letter.
The sources said the 7th steering committee meeting of the TAP project was held about five months ago and Pakistan had reiterated its demand for provision of Daulatabad reserves certification to proceed further on the subject.
Pakistan has been demanding the reserve certification for more than 15-months now because it believed international financial institutions and engineering firms would not come forward to take part in the $3.2 billion project unless the project offered guaranteed reserves and sales projections.
Turkmenistan had not been able to submit the certification despite assurances of its top leaders.
Some quarters in Islamabad still believe that Pakistan could forego the option of gas import because substantial discoveries were expected in its own offshore areas to meet its requirements by the year 2007.
Pakistan has been receiving reports that Turkmenistan had dedicated a major part of the Daulatabad field's gas reserves to Russian energy firm Gazprom that was also interested to lead a consortium to deliver gas from Iran to India via Pakistan.
The regret to host the committee meeting comes at a time the oil and gas ministers of India and Pakistan are planning to meet very shortly for the first time to directly discuss the Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline and diesel imports to Pakistan.
Following the meeting of President Pervez Musharraf and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in September 2004 in New York, the Iran-India pipeline has got prominence against other gas import plans from Turkmenistan and Qatar.
The two leaders had felt that such a project would contribute to the welfare and prosperity of the people of both the countries.
Pakistan is expected to earn over $500 million annually in transit fee besides required gas quantities, India will be the real beneficiary as the gas supply will meet its rising fuel requirement while Iran will be able to sell reasonable gas quantities to its only possible market in South Asia on a permanent basis for decades.
Foreign ministers of Pakistan and India had discussed all aspects of the pipeline in New Delhi on September 6, 2004 and had agreed that the oil and gas ministers should meet to discuss the issue in its "multifarious dimensions".
The Musharraf-Manmohan meeting triggered a series of consultations in the region involving Iran, Turkmenistan, Russia, Qatar, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan besides a number of other parties interested in providing financing, technical assistance or engineering expertise to the pipeline projects.
Informed sources said intense lobbying was expected in the coming few months because Iran, Turkmenistan and Qatar, with varying interests and backings, are trying to sell their gas to the growing economies of the subcontinent.
These sources said the ADB which has been floating the idea of a regional natural gas network and had sponsored a feasibility study of Turkmenistan to India pipeline, has now offered its services and financing to any gas pipeline project India and Pakistan agree to.
The top management of the Russian energy giant - Gazprom - that is one of the principal contenders of Iran to India pipeline had detailed discussions in New Delhi recently and is planning to send another delegation to Islamabad in the first week of December.
The Australian BHP, major global oil, gas and mineral exploration company, is also in intense consultations with Tehran, Islamabad and New Delhi. BHP has conducted more than one study on gas import plans in the region.
Crescent Petroleum of Sharjah, the consortium leader of Qatar gas export plan, has already submitted a gas sales agreement to Pakistan government which is undergoing technical evaluation.
