Energy Sector - 2

[Naresh]

<b>agnivayu Ji :</b>

1. With due respect, I cannot understand where you are coming from when you state that India should add USD One Billion to the cost of maintaining the Pipe Line.

The Pipe Line situated in Pakistan is for the Government of Pakistan to Safeguard and Defend. Do you expect the Government of Pakistan to allow the Indian Army to impinge on Pakistan’s Sovereignty and “Look after the Pipe Line”?

2. Of course the nature of whole exercise of the Pakistani Government is that it wants India to be stupid enough to build a Pipe Line via Pakistan so that Pakistan can turn it off at will.

3. A Pipe Line through Pakistan to India would be the act of a Kalidasa i.e. Chopping the Branch off, one is sitting on, from the Tree’s Trunk.

4. I cannot comment on Mani Shankar Aiyar’s reasons for having a Pipe Line through Pakistan other than to make his “Cambridge Mate” Pani Poori happy.

5. It seems to be on record that Mani Shankar Aiyar is running not only against the policy of the Prime Minister but also against the Defence Minsistry along with the Defence Staff, the Foreign Ministry including the mandarins but also against the advice of the Economic Ministry and its mandarins.

6. Even if the Gas was “sold” at the Pakistan-India border still the shortfall of gas supply, due to a stoppage of supply for various reasons in Pakistan, cannot be made good by supplying LNG as there would be no spare LNG capacity in Iran – all LNG trains are built to supply long time contracts – nor would there be a loading facility available, there would be no LNG Carriers available as at USD 200 Million a pop such a commodity will not be available at the local corner (provisions etc.) store. Finally there would be no spare port capacity to receive such LNG carriers as the Terminals built have a capacity to service for ongoing contracts. One would also not find a Re-gasification Plant lying idle for “Pakistan’s disruption of Natural Gas Supply via the Pipe Line”. Finally there would be a need for additional "Pipe Lines" to transport this "Additiona/" Gas.

As such with the attitude that Pakistan has had towards India, since inception in 1947 and the projected-expected behaviour of Pakistan vis-à-vis India in the next Fifty Years, building a Natural Gas Pipe Line would be an unmitigated disaster. It would be an exercise to test and try the Gods which every human is bound to fail.

Cheers <!--emo&:beer--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cheers.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='cheers.gif' /><!--endemo-->