The delegation in its meetings with the Pakistan Finance Minister, Shaukat Aziz, focused the relatively low cost of laying of the pipeline from Iran to Pak-Iran border.
As compared to the estimated cost of $3.2 billion of the proposed pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan, he said, the Pak-Iranian Gas Pipeline, which would cover a distance of about 1500 kilometres, was likely to cost $1.8 billion. Similarly the cost of the pipeline from Qatar to Pakistan, as earlier negotiated by Pakistan with a Qatar-based company would also be in the region of over $3 billion.
The Iranian delegation is also said to have offered to supply gas in bulk quantities up to a point on Pak-Iran border which may be a separate project from the proposed pipeline.
The Iranians further proposed that they would undertake supply gas directly to the gas distributing companies in Pakistan through the establishment of an Iranian gas marketing company in Pakistan. According to a handout issued by the Finance Ministry after the Iranian delegation's meeting with Shaukat Aziz the other day, the Finance Minister promised to examine the details of the Iranian delegation's proposals.
It was, however, noted that the geographical proximity of the two countries combined with the cost-effective aspect of the project, Pakistan might give preference to the Pak-Iranian Gas Pipeline over the other two proposals, namely, Turkmenistan Gas Pipeline and Qatar-Pakistan Gas Pipeline.
In a meeting with the Petroleum Ministry's Secretary, Abdullah Yousuf, the delegation presented a pre-investment study of the project, while the Petroleum Ministry provided details of factors leading to a steady increase in the consumption of gas in Pakistan's economic activity.
In view of favourable aspects of the project, Pakistan may give serious consideration to the various conditions, including the cost and other related matters.
The urgency of augmenting the supply of gas in the country with a view to meeting the rising demand can hardly be questioned.
It may be pointed out here that in spite of the addition of about one billion cubic feet of gas per day in the country's gas network thanks to timely development of the newly-discovered reserves, the shortfall in the supply would appear to be a matter of concern.
According to the recent reports, the Petroleum Ministry has issued instructions for what is described as 'gas load management' in the current winter season in the system operated by Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited.
According to this policy, gas supplies are reported have been reduced substantially or completely stopped for certain industries especially the glass industry.
This step has been taken to meet the demand for gas from the domestic/household and commercial consumers. The load shedding in gas supplies to industries is indeed an unfavourable development which would lead to a setback to industrial production.
The revival of the policy of gas load management will be seen as a miscalculation on the part of the ministry. It may be recalled here that before the beginning of the winter season the ministry in a statement had assured that no load shedding in gas supplies would be resorted to because the supply of gas in the country had increased by one billion cubic feet to a total of three billion cubic feet per day.
The continued shortfall in the supply of gas vis-à-vis the rising demand makes it imperative that one of the three proposals for import of gas be firmed up as early as possible in order to ensure the desired step-up in economic activity, especially industrial production for export and broadening of employment opportunities in the country.