Page 6 - MEOG Week 06 2023
P. 6
MEOG PIPELINES & TRANSPORT MEOG
Iran threatens Pakistan over
completion of gas pipeline
IRAN IRAN is reportedly dangling the threat of an the Pakistan border.
$18bn penalty over Pakistan, saying Islamabad “The Inter-State Gas Systems (ISGS) of Paki-
must construct a portion of the Iran-Pakistan stan and the National Iranian Gas Company
(IP) pipeline project in its territory by February (NIGC) had inked a revised agreement in Sep-
to March 2024, or pay the price. tember 2019 for the construction of the gas pipe-
Pakistani publication The News has reported line between the two countries.”
on the scenario. The newspaper said Tehran The pipeline project aims to provide Pakistan
communicated the threat of the fine to a visiting with 750mn cubic feet (21.2mn cubic metres) of
Pakistan official delegation some three weeks gas from Iran daily.
ago, according to a senior official of the Pakistani Under a Gas Sales Purchase Agreement
Ministry of Energy. (GSPA) signed in 2009 to cover a period of 25
“During the visit,” reported The News, “Ira- years, Pakistan was supposed to lay down in its
nian authorities said that the US sanctions on territory a pipeline of 781-kilometres from the
Iran were illegal [and so could have no bearing Iranian border to Nawabshah. A series of dead-
on the project’s progress] and Pakistan, under the lines were missed, with the emergence of new
[latest] revised agreement, was bound to erect US sanctions partly responsible for some of the
the pipeline in its territory till February-March delays, but it appears Iran has now reminded
2024. Iran had already completed part of the Pakistan of the latest agreed deadline, the threat
pipeline in its own territory from the gas field to of the fine and a possible move for arbitration.
Azerbaijan aims to expand
piped gas supplies to Turkey
TURKEY AZERBAIJAN is aiming to expand its natural anxieties that gas from the hub could be dis-
gas supplies to Turkey this year by approximately guised Russian gas that has been re-labelled to
19% to 10bn cubic metres (bcm) from 8.4 bcm evade sanctions on Moscow.
delivered last year, Azerbaijan’s Energy Minister Gas from Azerbaijan’s Caspian Sea fields is
Parviz Shakhbazov said on February 3. supplied to Turkey via pipelines that connect
Turkey imports gas via pipelines running to the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline
from Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran, while it (TANAP). The countries plan to increase the
receives liquefied natural gas (LNG) from coun- capacity of the route to some 32 bcm per year in
tries including Qatar, Nigeria, Algeria and the the next four years.
US. Supplies from Iran are frequently inter- In December, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham
rupted due to what it says are “technical faults”. Aliyev said his country planned to increase its
Last week, it announced a deal with Oman to gas exports to Europe via Turkey to at least 11.6
for 10 years receive 1.4bn cubic metres (bcm) bcm in 2023 from an estimated 11.3 bcm in 2022.
of LNG annually. Ankara has ambitions to make Proposals to build gas lines that would enable
Turkey a regional gas hub based on re-exports. Turkmenistan to feed Caspian Sea gas into the
Russian President Vladimir Putin is a supporter route to Europe via Azerbaijan and Turkey have
of the plan. European Union countries have not won the backing of the Turkmen regime.
P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 06 08•February•2023
