Oil, gas exploration

PM orders red tape elimination to facilitate companies

By Khalid Mustafa

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed the Petroleum Division to remove all bureaucratic hurdles and facilitate the companies wanting to invest in domestic exploration and production activities.

He said this during a briefing on the new petroleum policy that will be finalised by the middle of the current year, a senior official who attended the meeting, told The News.

Under the standard operating procedures (SOPs), the E&P companies had to get permission at very development phase but now it has been decided to change the current regime to informatory regime. And under the new regime, exploration and production companies will just inform about their plan and not to get permission.

The prime minister, according to the official, had directed the authorities to hold roadshows in various countries to attract multinational middle companies, as the large global companies were not interested in Pakistan because of big oil reserves in the Middle East countries.

To a question, he said the next bidding of blocs will be held after roadshows somewhere in third quarter of the current year.

About the enhanced recovery, the exploration and production activities will be offered more incentives. Explaining enhanced recovery, the official said when more than 60 percent oil and gas was recovered from a well, then most of the companies abandoned the wells saying more technology and investment was required to extract the remaining 40 percent oil and gas, but the government has decided to allure the E&P companies for investment to exploit the potential of enhanced recovery of oil and gas, and to this effect more incentives will be offered.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has also directed the local companies to expedite their exploration work in the oil and gas sectors. He also directed the Petroleum Division to extend every possible assistance to the foreign companies working in this sector.

Mr Khan said nature had bless Pakistan with oil and gas reserves besides other minerals and the country could benefit from them through their exploration and use.

He said unfortunately, the previous governments had concentrated on import of precious fuel items instead of exploration in the oil and gas reserves. This phenomenon, he said, affected the industrial sector and also put an extra burden on the masses. The prime minister directed complete security for the foreign companies busy in the oil and gas exploration.

The meeting decided to set up a task force for security of foreign companies particularly for those which will work in Bloc-28.