“The successful bidders will be issued licenses within 15 days,” G.A. Sabri, special secretary at the Islamabad-based Petroleum Ministry, said in a phone interview today. The companies bid yesterday for 41 blocks out of 53 offered by the government, he said.
Pakistan Petroleum, the nation’s biggest gas producer, won 13 licenses, the most, while Oil & Gas Development Co., Pakistan’s largest explorer, got six, he said. Pakistan Oilfield Ltd. was awarded two licenses, while BP and Eni won two and one, respectively, among others.
Pakistan is targeting to attract $15 billion in investment to develop its oil and gas industry over the next five years, Asim Hussain, former adviser to the prime minister on the oil industry, said in July. Pakistan is betting on oil and gas production to bolster growth as the government battles extremist violence and its worst economic crisis in a decade.
The bid of the Pakistan Peoples Party-led coalition government to revive the economy has been hurt by Taliban militancy in the country’s northwest region that has killed thousands of people.
“The licenses will bring $175 million in initial investment,” Sabri said. The 12 blocks that failed to draw bids are “potentially high-risk areas” in Baluchistan, Sindh and Punjab provinces, he said, without elaborating.
Offshore Exploration
BP, Eni and Oil & Gas Development have licenses to explore off Pakistan’s coast, Sabri said. The country has yet to find oil and gas offshore.
Pakistan wants to boost domestic fuel production to reduce its oil import bill and meet energy demand, which is growing 5 percent annually. Gas production of 4.1 billion cubic feet a day meets about 60 percent of demand. Pakistan imports more than 80 percent of the oil that it uses.
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