Turkmenistan Issues TAPI Pipeline Construction Orders

Turkmenistan’s government has issued orders to start construction of the  Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline, news agency AFP reported Monday.

President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov on Saturday ordered state companies Turkmengaz and Turkmengazneftstroi to begin building Turkmen section of the pipeline, the news agency reported citing local state media.

The Turkmenistan official newspaper also said the government expects the pipeline to be fully operational by the end of 2018.

Earlier this year, TurkmenGaz was selected as the TAPI pipeline consortium leader. Last year, gas companies of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India established a company that will build, own and operate the planned 1,800-kilometer TAPI natural gas pipeline. The pipeline will export up to 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas a year from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India over 30 years.