Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif visited Panjgur and Turbat, Balochistan, Saturday and inspected a part of under-construction road network as part of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) by FWO. During a briefing, the COAS was told that 11 units of FWO had been employed in Balochistan for the construction of 870-km-long stretch of roads at five different locations simultaneously, of which 502 kilometres of roads had been completed in less than one and a half years on his (army chief’s) special directive. The COAS lauded FWO for their untiring efforts in the construction of such a vast road network across the length and breadth of Balochistan against all odds at such an amazing pace and paid rich tributes to FWO soldiers for sacrificing their lives and limbs for undertaking this national project.With the Iran nuclear deal having already upped the prospects of the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline being completed, China has entered the picture with work started on the construction of a 700-kilometre pipeline to import liquefied natural gas from China. Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has claimed that the pipeline would enable us to complete the Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline Project. The minister explained that Chinese interests centred around making the Gwadar Port a central hub for the CPEC. With work on the China-Pakistan pipeline already having been started, China is a strong contender to build the Nawabshah-Gwadar leg of the Iran-Pakistan pipeline. Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid repeated the assertion that Pakistan would now complete the gas pipeline project with Iran on a fast-track basis. The China-Pakistan pipeline will need 30 months to complete.It is China’s entry into the gas pipeline politics of the region that may mean that both pipelines are completed on a timely basis. However, there is something seemingly haphazard about the approach of the Pakistani government on how to resolve the country’s gas problems, with no one project being prioritised. Holding negotiations and signing deals with multiple potential suppliers makes no sense and it is high time the government decided which of the gas supply options is most suitable. The China-Iran option looks to be the most suitable – competitive rates and ease of financing. China has already offered to provide a loan to finance the 700 kilometre $1.8 billion pipeline connecting Gwadar to the country’s gas pipeline system. Chinese participation in the issue could also be key in pushing away pressure from the US, which led to India withdrawing from the original proposal for the Iran pipeline to supply both India and Pakistan.
pk.shafaqna.com
Engery starved: Pakistan finds multiple avenues to meet energy crisis
