ISLIM CHESHMA: Afghanistan on Wednesday said work would begin on the ambitious $10 billion Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline traversing South Asia dignitaries from Afghanistan and Turkmenistan gathered to celebrate its completion of the project’s construction on Turkmen soil.
Progress on the TAPI pipeline has been repeatedly delayed because of security issues in conflict-ravaged Afghanistan.
Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said that operations would begin within Afghanistan’s borders. The project was officially launched with a border ceremony held at Islim Cheshma in Turkmenistan. Afghan Prime Minister Hassan Akhund and Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedow attended the ceremony.
“This project will benefit not only the economies of the countries participating but also the entire region,” President Berdimuhamedow said in a video broadcast during the ceremony.
The TAPI pipeline is designed to transport natural gas from Turkmenistan’s Galkynysh gas field through Afghanistan and Pakistan to India. It will span approximately 1,800 kilometers (1,120 miles), crossing Afghanistan’s Herat and Kandahar provinces before reaching Pakistan’s Balochistan province and concluding in India’s Punjab region.
The pipeline aims to deliver around 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually. Under the distribution plan, Pakistan and India will each receive 42 percent of the gas, while Afghanistan will obtain 16 percent. Additionally, Afghanistan is expected to earn about $500 million annually from transit fees.
Initial construction of the pipeline in Turkmenistan began in 2015, and work in Afghanistan was initially slated to start in 2018 but has faced repeated delays.
