Tehran widens gap of mistrust over IPI project

Islamabad: Tehran parleys have widened the gap of mistrust between Iran and Pakistan over Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) gas pipeline as the host country did not show any flexibility in its demand of reopening of agreed issues of the project.

Pakistan's official delegation which visited Iran between September 27 and 29 told Iranian counterparts during the course of meetings that IPI was a 3-nation project and any agreed issue can be renegotiated once all the parties agree on it.

Iran demands reopening of gas pricing system, besides reviewing the gas sale-purchase agreement (GSPA) for IPI. Pakistan, however, is willing to carry on the formula that was agreed by the parties during the steering committee meeting in Islamabad.

Sources said Iran's changing demands are confusing the decision-makers in Islamabad to such an extent that they have started wondering if Tehran really wants the project to go forward.

A 4-member Pakistan delegation, led by acting Petroleum Secretary, G.A, Sabri, had visited Iran for discussing with Iranian counterparts modalities for IPI. The two sides had held four rounds of talks in Tehran, but they could not make progress on items in their agenda.

Iran had invited Pakistan to negotiate IPI-related issues which had been agreed upon previously in a steering committee meeting held in Islamabad in April last. Since Pakistan is keen to make IPI a reality as early as possible it showed flexibility by accepting Iran's demand to negotiate some issues of the project.

The officials in Islamabad claim that Iran has not reciprocated Pakistan's flexibility. They are of the view that Iran's changing stance is giving negative signal to Islamabad. 'We have developed strong feeling now that instead of wasting more time and money on IPI Islamabad should take into account some other workable project to have an additional source for import of gas. The new development can shift our focus from IPI to Turkmenistan-Afghanistan- Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas line project, they said.

IPI is a case of inordinate delay. The project was conceived by India in early 90s. After initial survey, Iran and India thought it necessary to offer Pakistan to become a party to it. Energy-deficit Pakistan immediately accepted the offer and joined the project, which was then renamed as 3-nation gas line. Between 1994 and 2008, the project witnessed different phases. It has been a worst case of economic and geo-political situation. Delay has already pushed up the cost of the project from initial estimates of $2.5 billion to $7.5 billion. Even after an increase of 300 percent in cost, there seems no clear hope of early maturity of the project Pakistan once thought could bail it out from energy crisis.