April 2013, Vol. 240 No. 4

Projects

Controversial Pipeline Construction Under Way In Pakistan

Pakistan is moving ahead with a pipeline to bring natural gas from Iran despite American opposition with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisting the West has no right to block the project.

Questions exist whether Pakistan can finance the $1.5 billion it needs to construct the pipeline. The U.S. is promoting an alternative pipeline that runs from the gas fields of Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan and then to India. Iran said it has built 560 miles of the pipeline with 200 miles still to be built in Iran. Pakistan’s segment is expected to be 500 miles. Gas is supposed to start flowing by the end of 2014.