The Ministry of Energy has given four new blocks to exploration and production (E&P) companies in various parts of Balochistan with the intention to discover oil and gas reserves in the selected areas.
As per a stock filing, the awarded companies include Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), Mari Petroleum Company Limited (MARI), and Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL).
The Directorate General of Petroleum Concessions (DGPC) of the Ministry of Energy notified these blocks to exploration and production companies, in addition to the scope of work on future joint-venture projects associated with the exploration and production of oil and gas fields.
As per the ministry,?operators having high?stakes in a block will serve?as operators in the designated block, while the remaining two companies will act as joint-venture partners.
Talking to the media, a senior government official said that this was a good response from the oil and exploration companies to have committed to undertaking a minimum investment of $22.6 million.
Sources reported the following details of the blocks provisionally given to oil exploration companies are:
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South Pishin Balochistan: MARI (37%), PPL (35%), OGDCL (28%).
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Shaigalu Balochistan: PPL (40%), MARI (30%), OGDCL (30%)
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Tanishpa?Balochistan: OGDCL (37%), MARI (28%), PPL (35%).
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Lugai Balochistan: OGDCL (40%), MARI (30%), and PPL (30%).
In addition, the stock filing revealed that the formal award of petroleum rights in the above-mentioned blocks is conditional on the following, for each of the blocks:?