OGDCL discovers huge oil, gas reserves in KP

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s prime oil and gas exploration company, OGDCL has discovered huge oil and gas reserves in the Wali block near Lakki Marwat in KP. The find is being estimated as the biggest one in the last decade, top sources in the Energy Ministry told The News on Sunday.

“The Wali block reserves are considered equal or more than the reserves found in the Nashpa field. The Nashpa reserves are equal to 95 MMBOE (million barrels of oil equivalent). Once the Wali block is developed with at least nine to ten wells, the country will be able to get 100-150 mmcfd gas,” the sources said.

Read more: PM directs to fast track gas exploration licences

When contacted, OGDCL spokesman Ahmad Hayat Lak confirmed the development, saying that the company has discovered a huge find of oil and gas in the Wali block but he refused to share the details.

The sources further said: “We are at present working at a well, namely Wali-1, wherein the OGDCL experts have found three formations that include Kawagar, Hungu and Lockhart. In the Kawagar formation, there is gas of 11 mmcfd with 1,000 barrels per day, while in the Hungu formation, 11 mmcfd gas with 950 barrels per day oil and in the Lockhart, the OGDCL has found 14 mmcfd gas with 1,000 barrels per day crude oil. And this is how 36 mmcfd gas and 2,950 barrels per day crude oil in total, the OGDCL will get from just three formations in the Wali-1. However, the Wali block is large in size and the seismic studies have identified huge gas and oil reserves in this block. We have to carve out the development plan in the whole block in the next four to five years, under which the OGDCL will have to dig out more wells in this block.”

Read more: Oil and gas reserves of Pakistan going to India due to lack of exploration

“However, in the Wali block reserves, the OGDCL experts have found 4.2 percent existence of the carbon dioxide against the spec of less than three percent set by the OGRA. We will have to reduce the CO2 content by less than three percent,” the sources said, adding: “the OGDCL can increase the extraction of gas volume from 14 mmcfd to 20 mmcfd from Lockhart, which will be available in the short period of time and to this effect, the SNGPL has been asked to lay down the pipeline of 55 kilometres to get the gas from the Lockhart and connect it to the national grid.”

“We are also going to dig another well named Wali-2 as an appraisal well, which will further reinforce the existence of oil and gas reserves,” the sources said. The sources further disclosed that the Wali block also has the LPG (propane and butane) in abundance and the OGDCL is planning to install an LPG extraction plant also.

The OGDCL is currently producing 37,000 barrels per day crude oil, which is 48 percent of the country’s total production, the sources said, adding that likewise, the OGDCL also produces 900 mmcfd gas, which is 29 percent of the total production. The OGDCL also produces 850 metric tonnes of the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) per day, which is 37 percent of the country’s total production, the sources added.