Russia's Gazprom to form joint venture with OGDCL

ISLAMABAD: Oil and Gas Company Limited (OGDCL) and Gazprom International have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for mutual cooperation, joint ventures and use of state-of-the-art technology in oil and gas exploration and development, a statement said on Thursday.

The agreement was signed in Saint Petersburg on July 3, 2017, it added.  Both the companies were represented by their chief executive officers. Earlier, Russian delegations had visited Pakistan to negotiate and finalise the possible cooperation framework.

During their visits to Islamabad, Gazprom International deputy chairman and chief executive officer had underscored their preference and commitment in Pakistan’s energy sector, the statement said.

Under the cooperation framework, Gazprom International will explore investment opportunities in Pakistan’s E&P sector in coordination with OGDCL. Gazprom International will offer joint venture options to OGDCL in various international blocks. The company has agreed to introduce latest and state-of-the-art technology for production enhancement in OGDCL operated fields in Pakistan, it added.

OGDCL and Gazprom will cooperate in the commercialisation of stranded or marginal fields, which is likely to significantly add to OGDCL’s production and revenues. Both the parties have also decided to cooperate in oil and gas infrastructure development and import of hydrocarbons to Pakistan from joint fields.

In order to ensure effective implementation of the MoU, both the companies agreed to form a joint working group, which will hold its first meeting in the middle of August 2017, the statement said.

Gazprom International currently operates in nearly 20 countries on four continents and participates in almost 40 projects of different scales. The key projects are implemented in Algeria, Vietnam, Bolivia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Bangladesh and on the North Sea Shelf (British, Danish and Dutch sectors).