Islamabad says the project to transfer Iranian natural gas to Pakistan needs to be implemented, one way or another, to settle the energy crisis in the country.
The Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline is the key option to relieve energy shortages in Pakistan, said Pakistanâ„¢s Foreign Office Spokesman Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry in his weekly press briefing on Thursday.
The Pakistani government is committed to settling the countryâ„¢s energy crisis, and seeks to implement the project within the set timeframe, the spokesman was further quoted by IRNA as saying.
On March 11, Iranâ„¢s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari inaugurated the final construction phase of the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline which is to carry natural gas from Iran to its eastern neighbor.
The pipeline could see 21.5 million cubic meters per day of Iranian natural gas exported to Pakistan.
The new Pakistani government has, on several occasions, stressed that it will pursue the gas pipeline project.
Petroleum and Natural Resources Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said on June 15 that Islamabad would honor the agreement signed with Iran during the previous government.
Earlier this month, Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal also reiterated that the new Pakistani government would continue the joint gas pipeline project with Iran, saying the issue of energy is Islamabadâ„¢s top priority.
The joint multi-billion-dollar pipeline is designed to help Pakistan overcome its growing energy needs at a time when the country of over 180 million people is grappling with serious energy shortages.
AR/NN/HMV
This article originally appeared on: Press TV