"January, in my opinion, will see the last meeting to found a consortium for the TAP (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan pipeline)," Afghan Minister for Mines and Industries Mir Mohammad Sediq told Reuters in an interview.
Sediq said work would then start on the project - he estimated - that would cost dollars 3.6 billion. However, he gave no estimate for a completion date for the pipeline or details on financing plans or likely consortium members.
The long-delayed project envisages a pipeline-running 1,600-km (1,000 miles) and providing Turkmenistan with a new outlet for its gas, Afghanistan with transit revenue and Pakistan with much-needed energy.
Afghanistan is struggling to emerge from 25 years of foreign intervention and civil war.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai said last month that the project was "very real and feasible." Sediq said the planned pipeline would have enough gas supplies to run for 20 years at a rate of 30 billion cubic metres of gas annually. The line could be extended to India.
While concerns remain over security in Afghanistan, questions have also been asked about the size of Turkmenistan's Dauletabad gas field slated to feed the pipeline with the fuel. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has said reserves' information from Turkmenistan shows lower-than-expected gas deliverability there.
"Turkmenistan's reserves in Dauletabad are more than needed for Pakistan and India," Sediq said. "The volume is enough for 20 years."