Tender Announcement for the Oil Tank of Khwaja Ghar in Takhar Province
- 2025-05-21
- 35
Introduction
In December 2002, the representatives of the governments of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and Pakistan laid the foundation stone for an important project by signing a tripartite agreement in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan. At that time, the project was signed between the three countries under the name TAP (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan). However, with the signing of another quadrilateral intergovernmental agreement in December 2010, India officially joined this project and was named TAPI.
In 2013, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan and India introduced their state-owned gas companies to manage and execute the technical work of the project on behalf of their respective governments: The Afghanistan Oil and Gas Corporation (AOGC) representing Afghanistan, Turkmen Gas representing Turkmenistan, Interstate Gas Private Limited (ISGS) representing Pakistan and GAIL Limited (GAIL) representing India were appointed to implement the project. The four countries decided to form a consortium to implement the project. Turkman Gas was given the responsibility of managing the consortium by taking 85% of the shares. The remaining 15% was divided among the other three parties, with each party having a 5% share in the project.
It is worth noting that in 2015, TAPI Company Limited, a joint venture company called TAPI was established in the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and is involved in the planning, financing and implementation of the project.
Technical aspects of the project
- The length of the pipeline from the Galknesh gas field in Turkmenistan to Fazilka, the border point between Pakistan and India, is 1,821 km.
- The annual gas transport capacity is 33 billion cubic meters.
- The length of the pipeline in Afghanistan is 821 km.
- The total cost of the project is estimated at 6 to 7 billion US dollars.
- The duration of the project will be 30 to 50 years.
- The diameter of the pipeline is 56 inches
- Around 400 million US dollars will be paid to the Afghan government each year.
Economic benefits of the project
As this is an important energy project and energy is now considered a basic requirement for economic growth and development, especially for Afghanistan, the direct benefits of this project can be considered as succeeding:
- Transit fees: As the pipeline will be laid from Afghan territory to India and Pakistan, hence Pakistan and India are obliged to pay a transit fee to Afghanistan every year based on the signed agreements. Although the transit agreement between Afghanistan, India, and Pakistan has not yet been finalized, according to an initial agreement and calculation, each country will pay about $ 212 million as transit fees to Afghanistan in 2012.
- Employment opportunities: Thousands of people will be employed during the construction and operation phases of the TAPI pipeline. During the construction phase, the TAPI Company is obliged to procure all machinery, materials, and labor required for the project from Afghanistan.
- Access to sustainable energy: As the TAPI pipeline passes through two important industrial and commercial provinces of Afghanistan, such as Herat and Kandahar, these provinces will benefit from cheap and sustainable energy. In a first step, the completion of the 152 km long pipeline from Turghondi to Ghuzara in Herat is planned. In this phase, the focus will be on supplying gas to the Herat Industrial Park. If the Herat Industrial Park is supplied with cheap and sustainable gas, the industry will grow tremendously, and many Afghan investors will be attracted to invest in the country.
