Pak, Russia sign $10bn gas pipeline deal

Pakistani and Russian officials on Thursday signed a historic $10-billion offshore gas pipeline agreement in Moscow.

Inter State Gas Systems (ISGS), a state-owned Pakistani company, will work alongside Russia’s energy giant Gazprom, to execute the multibillion-dollar project.

According to the agreement, Pakistan will import some 500 million to 1 billion cubic foot of gas from Russia daily, which would be transported via sea link.

The pipeline construction is expected to be completed in three to four years.

SGS Managing Director Mobin Saulat had earlier said Gazprom would conduct the feasibility study on its own expenses to assess economic viability and cost of the project.

“The CPEC project has now entered the industrialisation phase and needs gas for duty and tax-free Special Economic Zones (SEZs),” he said.

“The offshore gas pipeline will meet energy needs of industries being set up in the economic zones along CPEC route.”