ISLAMABAD - The government of Pakistan on Wednesday executed petroleum concession agreements (PCAs) and exploration licences for eight oil and gas blocks where E&P companies will be investing over $33.3 million in three years.
The signing ceremony to execute petroleum concession agreements (PCAs) and exploration licences (ELs) was held here which was attended by Muhammad Ali, Minister for Power and Petroleum, Dr Muhammad Jahanzaib Khan, Special Assistant to Prime Minister (Governance Effectiveness), DG SIFC, Major General Tabassum Habib (Hilal-e-Imtiaz Military), National Coordinator SIFC, Lieutenant General (R) Muhammad Saeed.
The petroleum concession agreements and exploration licences were executed over block no. Kotra East (2867-8), Murradi (2767-7), Sehwan (2667-19) and Zindan-II (3271-9) with Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), Multanai (3168-3) with Pakistan Oilfields Limited (POL), Sawan South (2668-26) with United Energy Pakistan Limited (UEP) – a Chinese exploration & production company, Gambat-II (2668-25) with joint venture of Pakistan Petroleum Limited (Operator) and OGDCL and Saruna West (2666-1) with joint venture of POL (Operator), PPL and OGDCL.
The exploration licences and PCAs were signed by Momin Agha, Secretary Petroleum Division, Kashif Ali, Director General Petroleum Concessions on behalf of Government of Pakistan, Ahmed Hayat Lak, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO), OGDCL, Shuaib A Malik, Chairman/CEO, POL, Sikandar Ali Memon, Chief Operating Officer, PPL and Dr Nadeem Ahmed, Head of Exploration, UEP. Minister for Petroleum Muhammad Ali stated that these efforts will bear fruit for the country in the form of additional hydrocarbon reserves during next few years. The minister expressed that execution of the exploration licences and PCAs will not only enhance investment in the petroleum sector but will also contribute in bridging the energy demand and supply gap.
The minimum investment to be carried out by the exploration and production (E&P) companies in these blocks for prospecting will be over USD 33.3 million in three years. For blocks that have discoveries, investments of several hundred million dollars will be made by these companies to develop the production. Moreover, companies are obligated to spend a minimum of $30,000/year in each block on social welfare schemes in their respective areas.
