Hangu admin directed to begin work on Mardankhel-3 well

PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Naveed Kamran Baloch has directed the Hangu district administration to begin work on the Mardankhel-3 well within the next few days.

He issued the directives at a meeting called on the directives of the prime minister so that the issue of Mardankhel-3 could be resolved at the earliest.

Senior representatives from MOL Group, Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and others attended the meeting.

The Mardankhel -3 well has a potential to deliver 12.5 MMSCFD when it was tested by MOL Pakistan Oil and Gas Co. B.V, an international upstream oil and gas company operating in KP since 1999.

Mardankhel-3 promises to widely redress the energy crisis in the country, but unfortunately, the project is facing a halt since early 2017.

The chief secretary acknowledged the efforts of MOL as an international upstream entity in the region, and extended his full support to address the problems related to Mardankhel - 3.

It was explained to the chief secretary that after successful drilling of the well by MOL Pakistan in March 2017, rig demobilisation was forcefully stopped by locals for natural gas provision.

An operation was carried out by law-enforcing agencies in which 7-8 people injured.

The project has been stalled since then and the well still remains to be connected to the national grid.

In order to highlight the importance of having the well brought online at the earliest, the Regional Vice President of MOL Group, Ali Murtaza Abbas stated: “Apart from supplying 25 percent of the hydrocarbon requirements of the country, we paid approximately USD 110 million in royalty and USD 300 million in taxes to the Government of Pakistan last year; so when one of our projects such as Mardankhel-3 suffers, the country suffers as a result.”

He said that MOL Pakistan would keep contributing to welfare projects in the area in line with its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) commitments.

On the occasion, SNGPL general manager stated that once work on the pipeline was started, it can be completed within a month.

The pipeline that would connect the well to the Central Processing Facility, and subsequently to the main SNGPL lines, will stretch up to seven kilometres and pass through 17 villages in Hangu.

Ali Murtaza Abbas lauded the prime minister’s keen interest in ensuring the timely tie-in of Mardankhel-3 and appreciated the chief secretary for his eagerness to resolve the issue.