ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources is in the process to award 41 new blocks to oil and gas exploration companies operating in different parts of the country.
“As many as 41 new blocks will be awarded after receiving no-objection certificates (NOCs) from M/s Defence from terrain point of view,” official sources told the state-run news agency.
Under the petroleum policy 2012, they said the Ministry had already awarded 46 new exploration licences and 41 development and production leases to step up exploration activities.
“The government was utilizing all available resources to accelerate oil and gas exploration activities in potential areas to achieve elf-sufficiency in the petroleum sector,” they said.
During the last four years, they said grant of exploration licences and leases witnessed an increase by 39.4 percent and 200 percent respectively as compared to corresponding years of the previous government.
While answering a question, the sources informed that exploration and production (E&P) companies drilled 386 exploration and development wells that resulted in 101 new oil and gas discoveries.
While during the same period of previous government, 100 exploratory and 172 appraisal/development wells were drilled which made just 39 oil and gas discoveries.
In a short span of four years, they said the government so far added over 944 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) gas and 32,343 bpd oil in the transmission network across the country through indigenous resources. Whereas the country’s total crude oil production has reached 90,000 barrels oil per day (bpd).
During tenure of the current government, around 466 mmcfd additional gas from new discoveries and 478 mmcfd gas from existing fields, while 11,149 bpd oil from new finds and 21,194 bpd from existing wells have so far been added in the system, they added.
They said 68 finds, out of total 101 discoveries, had added proven reserves of about 5.4 tcf gas, while the calculation of 33 wells were yet to be determined. As many as 87 finds have been made in Sindh, seven each in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
During the same period, the country is estimated to have consumed about 5.2 tcf gas which means that more than 100 percent replacement had been made for the resource consumed.
Replying to another question, the sources informed that the ministry had awarded 70 Supplemental Agreements (SAs) for conversion to Petroleum Concessions Agreements (PCAs), aimed at expediting oil and gas exploration activities in hydrocarbon potential areas of the country.
“As many as 70 SAs covering 94 leases have been executed while remaining applications are also being reviewed and finalized on a fast track basis,” they added.
They said the agreements had been finalized in consultation with all stakeholders including from the petroleum sector as well as ministries of Finance and Law and Justice.
