ADB awards feasibility study for TAP gas pipeline

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) awarded Penspen the Techno-Economic Feasibility Study for its Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan natural gas pipeline project.
The project is conceived to transport gas produced in the established Dauletabad field in south-east Turkmenistan to undersupplied markets in Afghanistan and Pakistan with the potential to access unsupplied markets in northern India. Afghanistan would benefit from the transit fee and from potential off-takes to its own gas markets.

The scope of the study is to:
-- Select a single pipeline route for development;
-- Perform environmental and social studies on the route;
-- Consider seismic impacts;
-- Produce a route corridor at 1:200,000 scale;
-- Perform hydraulic analysis to suit gas market demand;
-- Define an optimum transmission system;
-- Estimate capital and operating costs;
-- Perform economic analysis, assess project viability;
-- Produce inception, draft final and final reports in English and Russian.

The project duration is 5 months. The final report is due for issue on 15 September 2003.