Pakistan to pay USD 18 billion in penalty if it doesn’t go ahead with Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline project – EQ Mag
Concerns were raised by Pakistan’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Wednesday over the payment of $18 billion in penalty if the country does not go ahead with the Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline project.
As quoted, PAC Chairman Noor Alam Khan said, “The US should pay the penalty if it does not approve of Pakistan and Iran going ahead with the gas pipeline project.”
“The USA will have to do away with double standards — being lenient with India in meeting its energy needs while punishing Pakistan for the same,” Khan added.
As per the report, the observation came after Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) wrote a letter to PAC to inform that a meeting with the US ambassador would be arranged after his return from Washington.
As quoted by DAWN, the ministry said: “In view of the great importance of the Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project in the emerging regional situation, this ministry has been exploring all possible options, including close engagements and meaningful exchanges with relevant parties, including Iran and the USA.”
“In this regard, a technical team from the petroleum division visited Tehran in January to discuss ways and means to proceed with the IP gas project. The Prime Minister’s Office has held inter-ministerial meetings of all stakeholders and agreed on an action plan to proceed on the IP gas pipeline project,” it added.
While responding to a query regarding the purchase of petroleum products from Russia, the foreign ministry said that an agreement has been made with Moscow to purchase a test cargo of crude oil, which will arrive in Pakistan soon.
The ministry said, “Pakistan was committed to the Pak Stream Pipeline project. The two sides are negotiating outstanding issues.”
Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline Project
The project is an under-construction pipeline to deliver natural gas from Iran to Pakistan. It is being built to carry natural gas from Iran’s South Pars field to Baluchistan and Sindh provinces in Pakistan.
Reports have mentioned that the pipeline will allow Pakistan to start receiving 750 million cubic feet of gas from Iran daily.
The project was supposed to be completed by December 2014, with operations beginning on January 1, 2015, but there have been massive delays.
Earlier this year, Tehran told a visiting Pakistani official delegation that the US sanctions on Iran are illegal. It also said that Pakistan should construct the gas pipeline in its territory by February-March 2024.
Source: PTI
