IEA calls for TAPI action plan

Afghanistan’s Ministry of Mines and Petroleum officials said on Sunday they are hoping to get the construction schedule for the TAPI gas pipeline project from Turkmenistan within the next two weeks.

This comes after Afghanistan’s deputy minister of mines and petroleum visited Turkmenistan last week, where he met with TAPI project officials.

Afghan officials met with Mohammad Murad Amanov, the executive director of the TAPI project, and Turkmen Gas officials on the design, consumption and establishment of the gas distribution network.

During the meeting, Wahidullah Walimi, Afghan deputy mines minister, asked TAPI project officials to share the action plan for the commencement of work of the project.

According to a statement issued by the Afghan Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, their Turkmen counterparts agreed to their request.

The sides also discussed establishing a gas distribution network in Herat city and its industrial town.

Amanov pledged to cooperate in this regard, and called for technical teams of the two countries to start work on establishing the gas distribution network.

The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline will be a 1,814km trans-country natural gas pipeline running across four countries.

The TAPI pipeline will begin in Turkmenistan and traverse Afghanistan to enter Pakistan and India.

The TAPI pipeline will cross Afghanistan and the project, which will provide job opportunities for thousands of people, is expected to earn Afghanistan more than $400 million in revenue annually.