Pakistan is expected to sign Gas Sales Purchase Agreement (GSPA) with regard to US-backed Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project in Ashgabad on December 11, 2010, it is learnt. Pakistan has already signed Gas Pipeline Framework Agreement (GPFA) of TAPI gas pipeline project and federal cabinet in its meeting held on October 27, 2010 has already approved to kick off work on the project.
The agreement will be inked in Ashgabad summit scheduled on December 11 and would be attended by presidents of Pakistan, Afghanistan and India. President Asif Ali Zardari and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi would fly on Friday to attend the summit. Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Syed Naveed Qamar will attend 12th meeting of the TAPI Steering Committee scheduled on December 10. The steering committee comprises energy ministers of all the four countries that would finalise the draft of GSPA prepared by technical working group of TAPI. The meeting of the technical working group on TAPI gas pipeline project is under way in Ashgabad.
TAPI gas pipeline project aims to bring natural gas from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. The project was originally conceived as Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) gas pipeline project for which the heads of state of three countries signed an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) in May 2002. This provided for governmental commitments for the project.
Subsequently, a GPFA was signed by heads of states/governments of the three countries in December 2002, giving a broad organisational structure of the gas pipeline project and various contractual arrangements/facilitation of the parties required for supply of Turkmen gas to Pakistan through Afghanistan.
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