ISLAMABAD, Dec 5 (APP): Finance Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar here on Saturday welcomed the company’s plans to beef up supply of natural gas that would help meet the growing needs of power and fertilizer sectors in the country.
“The country is endowed with precious natural resources and it was imperative that we make full use of them”, the minister said while speaking to a delegation of Mari Petroleum Company Ltd (MPCL) led by its Managing Director Lt Gen (R) Nadeem Ahmed.
Ishaq Dar appreciated Mari Gas’s exemplary exploratory work and said utilization of indigenous resources was the way to preserve precious foreign exchange and boost economic development.
He said the government has embarked on the path to growth and development and it was important that energy requirements for the development activities are cattered for.
Earlier, Lt Gen (R) Nadeem Ahmed thanked the Finance Minister
for the Government’s policies as well as his role which had helped turnaround the company.
He briefed the Finance Minister about the company’s exploration,
development and production efforts, with reference to post-dismantling
of Mari Cost-Plus Gas Price Agreement (GPA).
He stated that the decisions taken by Economic Coordination
Committee of the Cabinet (ECC) relevant to the gas sector had enabled
the Mari Gas company to raise spending on exploration activities to
US$106 million this year as compared to US$ 32 million spent last
year.
The Finance Minister was also informed that MPCL will add up
to 200 MMSCF gas per day to the system within a couple of months
that will result in annual saving of US$ 250-300 million for the
country.
The MD on this occasion also referred to the company’s
application for conversion to 2012 Policy which would allow MPCL
to bring on stream substantial new production (around 100-150
MMSCF) by end-2016.
The MD also informed the Minister that with improvement of
security conditions in Balochistan, a number of new opportunities
are likely to open up.
The Minister stated that the Government would ensure that
the exploration activities continue all over the country in a
safe and secure environment and all necessary measure would be
taken to achieve that objective.
He assured MD Mari Petroleum of full support in its good
work and hoped that other Pakistani exploration companies would
be encouraged by the success that Mari Gas has achieved.
