The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline is moving closer to its first commercial gas sales in Afghanistan after years of delays, with Herat expected to become the first Afghan market served by the project.

According to the Times of Central Asia, Turkmenistan plans to supply gas to Herat through the TAPI pipeline, while the timeline for extending the project to Pakistan and India remains uncertain.

The report says Turkmengaz and Afghan Gas signed a memorandum on August 10 covering the purchase of gas through TAPI. However, the agreement does not yet specify the price, supply volume or exact date for the start of commercial deliveries.

Afghan and Turkmen officials are also working to develop a gas distribution network in Herat to supply industrial facilities, power plants and households.

Meanwhile, Herat Governor Mawlavi Islam Jar recently said construction of the TAPI pipeline in the province is expected to be completed within two months.

According to the governor, Turkmen officials have completed their work on the project and will hand it over to Herat authorities once the remaining process is finalized.

Jar has also urged residents and factory owners in Herat’s industrial park to make the necessary preparations for the start of gas distribution and pipeline connections.

The TAPI project is designed to transport Turkmenistan’s natural gas through Afghanistan and Pakistan to India, with a planned annual capacity of 33 billion cubic meters.

Afghanistan and Russia have discussed plans to expand economic and trade cooperation, including a proposal to establish a special economic zone at the Hairatan border port.

Ahmad Jan Bilal, Director General of State-Owned Enterprises, met with Dmitry Zhirnov, the Russian ambassador to Afghanistan, at his office. Saeedurrahman Mazhari, head of the director general’s office, and Momtazuddin Momtaz, head of legal affairs, also attended the meeting.

During the talks, Zhirnov thanked Bilal for arranging the meeting and proposed the establishment of a special economic zone in Hairatan. He said the zone could provide facilities for the storage, processing and packaging of agricultural products, as well as other economic activities.

The Russian ambassador also presented a proposal concerning joint-stock companies related to “Stras and Afsutor.”

Bilal welcomed the proposal and stressed the importance of establishing an economic zone. He said the General Directorate of State-Owned Enterprises was working to further strengthen and expand the activities of the relevant companies to help increase exports of Afghanistan’s fresh and dried fruits to international markets.

He added that Afghanistan welcomes Russia’s cooperation in various economic sectors and is ready to expand further joint economic and trade partnerships.

Bilal also called for cooperation and agreements on establishing a workshop for repairing Kamaz vehicles in Afghanistan and importing petroleum products from Russia.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the Russian ambassador assured the Afghan side of Russia’s comprehensive cooperation on the issues discussed.

Iran says reducing border and customs barriers is essential to increasing trade and economic exchanges with Afghanistan, as officials report a sharp rise in rail freight between the two countries.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said at a weekly press briefing that Tehran and Kabul have discussed ways to facilitate economic and commercial cooperation, particularly by reducing customs and border obstacles.

Baghaei said the issue was discussed during a meeting between Afghanistan’s Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and Iran’s president. He added that important measures have since been placed on the agenda and that constructive exchanges have continued at the ministerial level.

The Iranian official expressed hope that the process would help increase bilateral trade and remove existing obstacles to the movement of goods between the two countries.

Meanwhile, Jabbar Ali Zakari, Iran’s deputy minister of roads and urban development and head of the country’s railway company, said rail freight between Iran and Afghanistan has increased significantly.

Zakari said less than 15,000 tonnes of goods were transported by rail between the two countries annually in the past, while the figure has now reached around 130,000 tonnes per month.

He said Iran expects the volume to reach approximately 1.5 million tonnes annually if the current trend continues.

Iranian officials say expanding railway links with Afghanistan and other regional countries could further strengthen trade, transit and connectivity between Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia.