ID :
345430
Wed, 10/22/2014 - 12:41
Auther :

Islamabad Committed To Implement Gas Pipeline Project Soon

Islamabad, Oct 22, IRNA - Pakistan's Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said Tuesday afternoon that Islamabad is to find a way for speedy implementation of its gas pipeline project with Iran. The Iran–Pakistan gas pipeline, also known as the Peace Pipeline, is an under construction project to deliver natural gas from Iran to Pakistan. According to an agreement, signed by Tehran and Islamabad in 2010, each country has to complete its section of the project by 2014. Iran completed construction of its own section in July 2011 but the Pakistani side has not yet managed to fulfill its commitment upon schedule. If Pakistan fails to fulfill its obligation to complete the pipeline on its soil by the end of 2014, it will have to pay a daily fine of $8 million to Iran until completion of the project. Addressing members of the Pakistani Parliament, Abbasi referred to the project as a highly significant issue for meeting Pakistan's energy demands. Commenting on international obstacles on the way of completion of the gas pipeline project, Abbasi said his ministry is examining all possible ways for speedy implementation of the project. Pakistan's Daily Times news website has recently claimed that Tehran had unilaterally ended the government-to-government cooperation agreement with Islamabad. Iran's Ministry of Oil later rejected the claim and stressed in a statement that completion of the project is on the agenda of both capitals. "None of the two sides is willing to unilaterally end the agreement despite certain problems and disagreements on implementation of the project," said the statement. Meanwhile, Iran's Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs Ali Tayyebnia has lately discussed the issue with his Pakistani counterpart in Washington on the sidelines of the World Bank's annual meeting. The two stressed that a meeting by Iran-Pakistan economic commission will be held in the near future with the gas pipeline project as its main topic. The pipeline starts from Asalouyeh in Iran and stretches 1,172 kilometers (728 mi) through the country. The Iranian section is known Iran's seventh cross-country gas pipeline./end

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