Gas import: Oil minister revives hopes of IP pipeline

Highlights short and long-term strategies to tackle energy crisis.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has said that the Iran deal inked with world powers would have a positive impact on the Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline project.

“It is wrong to assume that the IP gas pipeline project has been suspended under external pressure,” said Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Resources Jam Kamal Khan, while addressing the participants of the Annual Technical Conference (ATC) organised by the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) in collaboration with the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) and Association of Pakistan Geoscientists.

He said that the government was to start import of liquid natural gas (LNG) on a short-term basis, and is working out a plan to explore shale gas in the longer run.

The minister said the government was pursuing a vibrant and friendly policy to attract more investment for the oil and gas sector, adding that the country needed a commitment and dedication to explore those resources for meeting the energy requirements.

State-owned OGDCL is all set to start exploration activities in Kohlu and Dera Bugti, where according to estimates, oil and gas reservoirs stand at over 22 trillion cubic feet (TCF), said OGDCL Managing Director (MD) Riaz Khan.

OGDCL will also exploration and development work in Kohlu, Balochistan, where rough estimates put natural gas reservoirs at over 22 TCF, he added.

“The Kohlu exploration block, spread over 2,500 square kilometres, possesses estimated reserves of about 22 TCF. According to preliminary estimates, more than 15.4 TCF reserves are described as recoverable”, Riaz added.

He said that OGDCL has constructed an 80-kilometre long road which connects a far-flung area of Kohlu with the main highway. The area has huge potentially recoverable oil and gas reservoirs and OGDCL is to start exploration activities there.

He also said that, within a year, the OGDCL is likely to add around 500 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) of gas into the system.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2013.

Like Business on Facebook, follow @TribuneBiz on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.