ISLAMABAD, June 30 (APP): Minister for Petroleum and Natural
Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Thursday said Pakistan Arab Refinery
Company (PARCO) was tasked with the project to complete Khalifa
coastal refinery to increase oil production capacity by 250,000
barrels per day.
Addressing a press conference here, he said the refinery
project which was abandoned in the past, was part of the
government’s efforts to accelerate exploration and production of
oil and gas.
He said the government has plans to set up more oil
refineries. Recently massive shale oil and gas reserves had been
discovered, he added.
The minister said a pilot project will be set up to evaluate
the total cost of the shale project.
He said 70 percent of present oil demand is met through
import.
For the first time licences of 16 non performing exploration
companies were cancelled, he said adding bidding would be held to
grant new licences for the new and existing blocks.
He said that the cross border TAPI gas pipeline project,
started last December would be completed in four years.
Talks are continuing on Iran Pakistan gas pipeline project as
despite lifting of sanctions on Iran, two issues regarding the
project were still unresolved.
Work on the project would start again after resolving these
issues, he added.
The minister said import of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) has
resulted in improvement of gas supply situation.
Now all the gas based industries and fertilizer plants were
getting gas. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) sector is also being
revived with the import of LNG, he added.
The minister said the domestic consumers will also get more
gas in winter and loadshedding will reduce further, adding more
LNG terminals are being set up to meet energy needs of the country.
Shahid said from October quality of imported oil would be
upgraded to 92 RONS, which will improve fuel efficiency of vehicles.
He denied the impression that electricity is getting expensive
due to LNG import.
The government not only increased power generation but also
made the electricity more cheaper, he remarked.
The minister said six oil and gas discoveries were made in
June, adding 83 discoveries were made in three years since the
present federal government took over.
These are a record number of discoveries made in just one
month, from where 50.1 mmcfd gas and 2,359 barrels oil per day was
being produced.
Shahid said out of the six new finds, two were made by
the Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDCL) and MOL Pakistan each, and one by Petroleum Exploration (pvt) Limited (PEL) and United
Energy Pakistan (UEP) each.
“Four discoveries have been made in different parts of
Sindh and two in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” he said.
The minister said PEL hit gas condensate discovery in Badin IV
South Block at Ayesha North I Well in Sindh province, where the
company dug 2,820 meters deep, conducted a successful DST (drill
stem test) and found flow at the rate of 8.1 mmcfd of gas and 49
barrels per day oil.
UEP made a gas discovery in Bukhari Lease at Limu East I Well
in Sindh province and assessed 2.0 mmcfd of gas flow.
While, MOL Pakistan made two discoveries in Tal Block at Makori
Deep I Well and Tal Block Tolang West I Well in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
and found 18.5 mmcfd gas and 2,020 barrels per day oil flow during
the drills.
OGDCL, the minister said, made two discoveries in Bitrism
Block at Bitrism West IA Well and in Thal block at Thal West I Well
in Sindh provinces with 215 mmcfd gas and 290 barrels per day oil.
Following the 83 oil and gas discoveries in last three years,
around 631 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) gas and 27,359
barrels per day Crude Oil production has been added to the system.
