Pakistan has once again reaffirmed its commitment to the Pak-Iran gas pipeline project, which has faced severe setbacks from US sanctions against Tehran since day one. Pakistan’s Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told the reporters that it is the sovereign decision of the government of Pakistan to move forward with the project and there is no room for any discussion or waiver from any third party for the construction of the pipeline inside Pakistan’s territory.
Pakistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran signed a multi-billion dollar joint venture to construct a 1931 kilometer-natural gas pipeline in 2013. Iran was to construct an 1150-kilometer pipeline in its territory while Pakistan was responsible for the rest of the 781-kilometer gas pipeline on its soil. Unfortunately, the project faced unlimited delay due to the US sanctions against Tehran and missed several deadlines for its completion over the past decade. Previously, Pakistan expressed its inability to pursue the project until US sanctions on Iran remained in place by issuing a notice of Force Majeure and Excusing Event to Tehran to suspend its contractual obligation on completion of the gas pipeline. Thus, prompting a warning from Tehran to pursue a case for a $ 20 billion penalty against Islamabad for missing the deadlines set in the accord. Recently, the caretaker government and Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) approved the construction of an 80 km long gas pipeline from the Iran border to Gwadar to meet the country’s urgent energy needs through a short-term measure.
Historically, despite stringent US sanctions, Iranian fuel and petrochemical exports have surged in recent years. Several countries including Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and others have been trading oil and natural gas from Iran throughout the past. The average monthly volume of Iran’s gas export to these countries is approximately 810 MMcf per day with the majority sent to Turkey under a 25-year contract. Meanwhile, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Azerbaijan signed a gas swap deal allowing for the exchange of up to 2 billion cubic meters (BCM) per year. Under this agreement, Iran receives gas from Turkmenistan and delivers an equivalent amount to Azerbaijan at the Astara border. Similarly, Russia, the UAE, and India had been procuring Iranian oil and gas directly or through intermediaries in the past. According to analysts, if and when sanctions are lifted against Iran, it is well positioned to expand sales swiftly across Asia and Europe.
Pakistan’s energy crisis poses serious predicaments for its feeble economy and highly volatile national security environment. Prolonged power outages almost shut the industries and largely squeezed the economy. The country faces a lack of resources to acquire costly LPG or thermal fuel to generate electricity to meet its urgent needs. Amid such scenarios, the Pak-Iran gas pipeline is a unique opportunity that offers South Asian nation an uninterrupted supply of Iranian gas at special discounted rates which is otherwise impossible. Surprisingly, despite the biting energy crisis over the past decade, Pakistani leaders neither dared to violate the US sanctions nor made concerted efforts to take a waiver from Washington in the best interest of their country.
Unfortunately, Pakistani leaders proved to be more faithful and loyal to the US decree than their national interests and public demand. The matter is largely mishandled by the government by relying on the baboos sitting in the foreign office, who in turn wrote a note verbal to the State Department and waited for a reply over the past several years. Energy insecurity has now become fatal for the economic survival of the country, thus the political leadership must handle the issue themselves by directly conveying Pakistan’s case to Secretary Blinken or US President Joseph R. Biden. Pakistan’s economic security is paramount and it could not be achieved without the energy security. Pakistan suffered the utmost in subservience to other countries including the US, Afghanistan, Iran, and Saudi Arabia. It is time to uphold Pakistan first slogan from now onward.
