Pakistan to sign Tapi gas line agreement on April 30

Pakistan will sign Gas Sales/Purchase Agreement (GSPA) on the multibillion dollars Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project on April 30, 2011. "We stand nowhere regarding gas import projects as we have already lost opportunity to import gas from Qatar due to inaction," Hilal A Raza, Managing Director (MD) of Inter-State Gas Systems (ISGC), said while addressing the "Third Oil and Gas Pakistan 2011 Forum" here on Saturday.
He said that Energy Minister of Qatar had informed two years back that Pakistan had lost opportunity of gas import from Qatar due to delay in the project. India may still avail option to rejoin Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project," he said, adding that first flow of gas from Iran is expected in 2014. He said that TAPI gas pipeline project had been reactivated and four countries--Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan and India (TAPI)--will sign GSPA on April 30 this year. "First flow of gas will commence in 2016. We are negotiating TAPI gas pipeline project. However, financing will be a critical issue."
"Gas import projects are being delayed due to inaction on the part of bureaucracy. Therefore, those held responsible should be made accountable," he said, adding that import of 4 billion cubic feet gas was planned. But that would not be enough to meet domestic requirements.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Progas, Abbas Bilgrami, said: "We have lost chance of import gas from Qatar that had waited for ten years to materialise the project". He said that Pakistan required consistent policies to secure investment in energy sector. He said that imported natural gas would be cheaper than liquefied fuel and, therefore, it would boost the economy. The Managing Director (MD) of Byco Refinery, Kalim A Sidiqui, said that Byco Group has one refinery and was working on setting up another refinery in Balochistan with 120,000 barrels per day output. That would be the largest one in the country. The new refinery will start production in the current calendar year.
"Our group has taken initiative to set up plant to use naptha to produce gasoline. Naptha is being currently exported in raw shape," Sidiqui said, adding that "we have also planned petrochemical complex which would consume the whole naptha being produced in the country".