Pakistan Approves $200m Budget for TAPI Gas Pipeline Project

Pakistan will hold a $200 million equity share of the proposed Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project.

The Economic Coordination Committee of the Pakistani cabinet gave the approval on Friday, Daily Times reported.

It also approved the release of $12 million out of this share for the preliminary works in four equal tranches, starting from January 2016 as per the disbursement plan.

The overall cost of TAPI project is $10 billion. Turkmenistan, being the consortium leader for the project, has agreed to contribute 85 percent of equity.

A 700-kilometre portion of nearly 1,800-kilometre TAPI pipeline will be built in Afghanistan and according to officials, is scheduled to be completed by 2019.

The Asian Development Bank stated that once completed, the pipeline is expected to export up to 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India annually for over three decades.

TAPI is a rival to the proposed Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) project.

Iran has signed an agreement with Pakistan to export 25 million cubic meters of gas per day. Pakistan should have started Iranian gas intake in early 2015, but it hasn't even begun construction of pipeline in its territory. In the Iranian section, the pipeline should be completed as well.

The U.S. supports TAPI while opposes IPI.

India dropped out of IPI project under U.S. pressure but a July nuclear accord with Tehran has prompted Indian leaders to push for its revival.