India-bound...

for prosecution. During the government takeover of Anbang Group, which will last for one year starting on Friday, the company will be managed by a group of officials from the CIRC, the central bank and other key financial regulators and government bodies.

The group will seek to undertake an equity restructuring of the insurance giant, even as it keeps Anbang operating as usual, protecting the rights and interests of its consumers and stakeholders, the CIRC said.

The government takeover of Anbang, which claims 1.97 trillion yuan (US$310.85 billion) in assets and ranks 139 on the Global Fortune 500 list, is a defining blow to the acquisitive conglomerate best known for acquiring New York’s landmark Waldorf Astoria hotel.

The unprecedented seizure of a major non-state company also underscores how far the ruling Communist Party will go in its growing campaign to lower financial risks, sending a signal to risk-taking private enterprises.

“There were pessimistic voices, but now we are witnessing the construction of the TAPI gas pipeline,” said Ghani, using the acronym for the conduit which takes its name from the four countries.

The quartet aims to complete the 1,840-kilometre (1,143-mile) pipeline and begin pumping natural gas from Turkmenistan’s giant Galkynysh gas field by the beginning of 2020.

While the pipeline will traverse warwracked Afghanistan, raising security concerns, the bulk of the 33 billion cubic metres of gas to be pumped annually through the conduit will be purchased by South Asian rivals Pakistan and India.

Turkmen strongman Berdymukhamedov, whose country currently depends heavily on China as a market for its natural gas exports, called diversification of gas deliveries an “important part of the politics” of the isolated Central Asian country.

And he said work on the Turkmen section of the pipeline was still ongoing.

India’s commitment to the pipeline has previously been questioned over its relationship with Pakistan and easy-access to liquified natural gas markets seen as potential stumbling blocks.

But its external affairs minister hailed the project as “a symbol of our goals” and “a new page in cooperation” between the four countries in a speech at the ceremony yesterday.

The overall funding picture for the mammoth gas pipeline remains unclear, with commercial energy giants such as France’s Total failing to follow up on reported interest in the project.

Turkmenistan sits on the world’s fourthlargest gas reserves but lost a major buyer in Russia after Russian energy giant Gazprom wound down imports of Turkmen gas and then ceased purchases completely in 2016.