Speaking at a press conference earlier today, Abbasi said OGDC found 35.8 million cubic feet of gas per day (mmcfd) in Thal East well-1 in Sindh and 1,032 barrels of crude oil per day in Nashpa well-5 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
The state-owned company has targeted to drill 31 wells in the ongoing financial year.
According to the minister, Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), another state-owned exploration firm, has also made two significant discoveries which included 468 barrels of crude oil per day and 56 mmcfd of gas.
“These two companies will be able to add 90 mmcfd of gas to the system, which will help minimise load-shedding,” he said, adding Punjab was facing 40% of gas disruption and the government would be able to tackle the shortage next winter by importing liquefied natural gas (LNG).
producing 300 to 350 mmcfd of gas and to attract fresh investment in the field the government would have to offer a new price. A one-year extension in the lease contract had been given to PPL and permanent extension would be provided after signing an agreement with the Balochistan government, he said.
He declared that the government would be able to overcome electricity outages to some extent in 2017 as LNG-based power plants were being set up in the country.
Responding to a question, the minister said international sanctions on Tehran had delayed the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project and work would start after restrictions were removed.
Regarding the Economic Coordination Committee’s permission to Pakistan State Oil to sign a commercial agreement with Qatargas, Abbasi clarified that the accord would be signed after approval of the company’s board of directors.
“LNG will cost $5.50 per million British thermal units (mmbtu) after a revised deal with Qatar,” he said.
The minister stressed that Russia was going to implement the North-South LNG pipeline project on build, operate and transfer basis, adding a new company would take up the project in case some Russian firm was slapped with sanctions.
He made it clear that all sectors including textile mills, compressed natural gas stations and power producers would have to bear the full cost of LNG import. The textile sector was receiving 60 mmcfd of LNG to meet its demand.
Discussing the appointment of a permanent managing director of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), he disclosed that three names had been sent to the prime minister for selection.
Speaking on the occasion, OGDC Managing Director Zahid Mir expressed the determination that the company would meet the target of drilling 31 wells by the end of June this year.
“A fresh injection of 125 mmcfd of gas will be made into the system in March,” he said, adding the company would also start producing 380 tons of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the period.
OGDC was examining samples of shale gas from the wells drilled during the last two years and a contract had been awarded to a firm for determining the shale gas potential in the best well, which would be declared the pilot project, he said. “More wells will be drilled if we find the potential.”
Mir pointed out that OGDC had also started working on the wells in Balochistan where it had declared force majeure. The company has 24 blocks in the province and work has started on eight of them.
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