Himalayan News Service

Manila, February 29,

ADB has approved a $700,000 technical assistance (TA) grant for a study to locate natural gas reservoirs in Pakistan in the event of supply disruptions in the planned Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) gas pipeline project.

The TAP Natural Gas Pipeline Project is a 1,700 km pipeline that will transport up to 30 billion cubic metres of natural gas annually from the Dauletabad fields in South East Turkmenistan to consumers in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and possibly India. The $3.3 billion project, to take five years, will begin after the countries involved and other partners have finalised various project agreements.

Underground reservoirs are proposed for Pakistan to store sufficient quantities of natural gas in case of any disruption — for example, through political action or sabotage — of supply through the pipeline.

"Gas demand in Pakistan, particularly in the north, is subject to major seasonal variations," says Najeeb Jung, and ADB senior energy specialist.