Iran and Pakistan are looking at ways to complete a long-delayed gas pipeline project between the two countries, Iran’s Consul General to Pakistan, Hassan Nourian, said on Monday.

“We see political determination from Pakistan to complete the project,” he told media persons at Karachi Press Club on Monday.

The countries signed an agreement to construct the pipeline from Iran’s South Fars gas field to Balochistan and Sindh provinces in 2010, but work on Pakistan’s portion has been held up due to fears of US sanctions.

The 1,900 kilometre (1,180 mile) pipeline was meant to supply 750 million to one billion cubic feet per day of natural gas for 25 years to meet Pakistan’s rising energy needs.

Nourian on Monday said the pipeline did not come under international restrictions, and that the two countries were discussing the issue.

He did not answer a question about the potential for Iran to take legal action against Pakistan if it did not complete its side of the pipeline this year.

APP adds: The Iranian consul general lauded the foolproof security efforts of Pakistan during the Iranian president’s visit.

Iran and Pakistan were committed and “fighting tooth and nail” to complete the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project, he said and added that Tehran wanted to help resolve the energy crises of Islamabad and was ready to assist in its development.

The consul general said that Iran was self-sufficient in crude oil and other resources and wanted to meet the needs of the region.

He said that the Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline project started in 2009 as the Iran-Pakistan-Indian gas pipeline project but owing to a few reasons India pulled herself out of the project. Later, the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline came into existence and commenced work on the project in 2012.

The time period of the project was extended to 10 years, which was expected to be completed in 2024 and could not meet its deadline, he said adding that the political leadership of Pakistan had the tendency to complete the project.

Nourian said that he was living in the metropolis and was well aware of people’s problems living without basic facility gas in their homes for cooking and other purposes.

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“I have always had a constructive and friendly relationship with various Pakistani media and the media persons have also played a positive role in strengthening of friendship between the two countries.”

The consul general said that Iran and Pakistan had always stood with each other in “sweet and bitter times and both had behaved like one soul in the two bodies.”

He said that in the latest development in the bilateral relations between Iran and Pakistan, “we witnessed the official visit of the President of Iran to Pakistan and his visit to the three major cities of Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.”

He said that both the countries vowed to boost bilateral trade to $10 billion a year.