Pak-Iran pipeline work to begin

A consortium will start work next week on a much delayed $7.5 billion gas pipeline from Pakistan to Iran despite American warnings of possible sanctions, Pakistani officials said yesterday.
The official said the ceremony would mark the start of work by an Iranian-Pakistani consortium on the 780-kilometre (485-mile) pipeline earmarked for the Pakistani side of the border, which is said to cost some $1.5 billion.
Pakistan suffers from a crushing energy crisis, but the United States says it is providing Islamabad with alternative means to help avoid sanctions.