Gas pipeline in Pakistan damaged

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KARACHI, Pakistan, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- Authorities in Pakistan said militants attacked a natural gas pipeline in the country's southwest, cutting supplies to a nearby power plant.

Authorities in Pakistan's southwestern Sindh province said a 24-inch natural gas pipeline, which fed a local power plant, was destroyed, Pakistan's Daily Times newspaper reports. Natural gas supplies to surrounding communities were disrupted and no return-to-service date was announced.

The attack follows an announcement from Turkmenistan that the implementation of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline would be accelerated.

Representatives from Chevron, Exxon Mobil, BP, BG Group and Malaysia's Petronas expressed interest in participating in the planned 1,043-mile pipeline during recent talks in Ashgabat.

Turkmen officials in May agreed to sell natural gas to Asian customers through the TAPI pipeline. The government said delivering gas through the pipeline would provide energy security to Asia.

TAPI has financial backing from the Asian Development Bank. Prospects are complicated, however, by security concerns in war-torn Afghanistan.