India hopes to resolve issues on IPI project

New Delhi: India is optimistic about resolving the pending issues with Pakistan on the tri-national Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) gas pipeline project during the bilateral talks in Islamabad on April 25.

The Union Petroleum Minister, Mr Murli Deora, left for Pakistan for talks on two trans-national gas pipeline projects – Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) and Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI).

While India is set join the TAP gas pipeline project during the two-day meeting starting April 23, it is hoping to resolve the contentious transit fee issue with Pakistan for the IPI project during the one-day bilateral talks on April 25. Mr Deora said that the visit to Pakistan will begin with the participation in the steering committee meeting on the TAP pipeline project called by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

“The talks are scheduled on April 23-24 and will see India formally joining the project,” he said.

Subsequent to the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) project meeting, India will try to sort out the bilateral issues with Pakistan on IPI project. The IPI pipeline project has been facing issues such as gas pricing and more recently lack of consensus between India and Pakistan over transit fees.

“We have been invited by the Pakistani oil minister to discuss the IPI pipeline project,” Mr Deora said.

While a broad understanding has been reached on the transportation tariff payable to Pakistan for bringing the gas via the pipeline passing through that country, the issue of transit fee to be paid to Pakistan for allowing the passage of gas was still pending. A technical team from India has recently visited Pakistan to lay the groundwork for the discussions on the IPI project and the delegation led by the Minister will try to take the process further.

Recently, Mr Deora had said that “there are some issues such as the charges to be levied by Pakistan for transit fees, but I am optimistic that we would be able to resolve them.” India has not participated in the IPI project talks since mid-2007 as it first wanted to resolve the issue of transit fee payable to Pakistan. While Pakistan is seeking $0.493 per million British thermal unit (mBtu) as transit fee, India has offered $0.15 per mBtu for providing security and right of way to the pipeline.