Pakistan Says IP Pipeline Work Delayed

Pakistani government officials claim that the country is 45 days behind scheduled when it comes to the work on Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project as it is unable to arrange finances for the project.

The Express Tribune says that this is the first time that the government has conceded that the project’s completion faces a delay.

The pipeline was originally supposed to commence supply from Iran’s South Pars gas field by the end of December 2014. It now appears that operations may not start till 2015.

Pakistan and Iran have already signed a sovereign guarantee agreement: if the project is delayed beyond agreed dates, Pakistan will have to pay a penalty to Iran.

However, Secretary Petroleum Ijaz Chaudhry on Thursday claimed that despite delays, the project will be completed on time.

The Express Tribune added that Chaudhry’s comments came within 48 hours of a Pakistan-China Joint Energy Working Group meeting; wherein Islamabad was unable to secure Chinese financial assistance for the project. Earlier, a consortium led by a Chinese firm backtracked from its commitment as lead financial advisor for the project. It is believed that mounting pressure from the US to shelve the Iran pipeline project led to its withdrawal.