NEW DELHI - An ambitious deal to build a gas pipeline between India and Iran through Pakistan has run into trouble, Irans foreign minister was quoted as saying on Sunday. Oil ministers from the three countries are set to meet in Teheran early next month over a pricing dispute and ways to build the 2,775-kilometer (1,735-mile) line across rugged terrain and heavily militarized frontiers.The pipeline situation is a little bit complicated because of the changing of circumstances from the time when the contract and agreement was signed, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on the New Delhi Television news channel. I think both sides found out that there are some specific difficulties to implementing the project agreement as it is now, Mottaki said.
Iran wants the gas price linked to international oil prices, and is offering India gas at US$7.20 (Ð6) per million British thermal units, with a 3 percent annual increase, an Indian official said earlier this month. But India says its only ready to pay up to US$4.25 (Ð3.54) per million Btu for the desperately needed gas, the official said.
The US$8 billion (Ð6.6 billion) pipeline was scheduled to be running by 2011. The pipeline would supply about 60 million cubic meters (78.5 million cubic yards) of gas a day to India and up to 30 million cubic meters (39.2 million cubic yards) a day to Pakistan.