Interfax reported that the construction of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline was one of the of the main issues in negotiations recently between Turkmen President Mr Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow and Afghan President Mr Hamid Karzai who was paying a working visit to Turkmenistan.

During the meeting, which was held in the seaside city of Turkmenbasy it was noted that the realization of this massive energy project which was initiated by Turkmenistan would be significant for all involved parties, primarily Afghanistan. The pipeline with directly help stimulate the Afghan economy raise investment solve social issues including employment which would have a positive effect on stabilization in the country.

According to the project feasibility study, the 1,735 kilometer TAPI pipeline will run from eastern Turkmenistan where major gas fields are located across Afghanistan and Pakistan to the town of Fazilka in India on the Pakistani-Indian border. The gas pipeline will have an annual gas handling capacity of over 30 billion cubic meters.

Among the priority areas for intergovernmental partnership are operations in electricity. In this context, Mr Karzai thanked Mr Berdimuhamedow for Turkmenistan efforts in boosting electricity supply to Afghanistan.

(Sourced from Interfax)