Iran gas project on, says Pak

Pakistan would proceed with the $4.1 billion Indo-Iran pipeline project keeping its national interest in mind, said the Pakistani Oil Secretary Ahmed Waqar today.

'Our president and prime minister have stated on numerous occasions that we will proceed with the project based on our national interest,' he told reporters after the meeting of the Indo-Pak joint working group.

The working group, headed by the petroleum secretaries of both sides, is expected to dwell on methods to finance the project, contractual matters, legal issues and security of the pipeline, 760 kilometres of which passes through Pakistan.

'A range of issues was discussed, including technical, commercial, financial and legal. All sets of issues were discussed in an open and candid manner. We have some understanding on most of the issues,' Waqar told reporters at the end of the first day of talks with India. He added the talks would continue tomorrow and a joint statement would be issued.

Waqar said the two-day talks here were to lay down the framework for the project. Pakistan and Iran had signed a Memorandum of Understanding last week.

This would later, be converted into a trilateral agreement involving all the three countries. The pipeline, which may be completed by 2009-10, would allow the daily flow of 150 million cubic meters of gas.

Pakistan would take about a third of the fuel and India the rest. Waqar said the Islamabad meeting between the petroleum minister Mani Shankar Aiyar and his Pakistani counterpart Amanullah Khan Jadoon was, 'more of a broad indication of the seriousness of parties concerned to take talks forward'.

This joint working group will lay down some milestones and concrete steps to be taken for achieving the project.'