Polish company poised to take oil, gas exploration to Rs100bn per year

ISLAMABAD: PGNiG - a Polish oil and gas company, operating in Pakistan since 1997, has planned to step up its exploration and production activities and take the business volume to Rs 100 billion per year.

"We have the intention to take the company's production to $100 million per year in the coming days," President PGNiG Management Board Piotr Wozniak said while addressing a ceremony held here to celebrate the company's 20th anniversary.

Polish ambassador to Pakistan Piotr Opalinski, Managing Director PGNiG Pakistan Branch Andrzej Kaczorowski and General Manager (Commercial) Shahid Karim were also present on the occasion.

The PGNiG President said the company would drill 14 more oil and gas exploration wells in hydrocarbon potential areas and play an important role in meeting Pakistan's growing energy needs.

Before acquiring the current Kirthar Concession (Block 2667- 7), he said, the company operated and carried out exploration activities in four other Concessions namely Khanpur West, Sabzal, Mekhtar and Sabzal South.

He said the Rehman Gas Field was discovered in the Kirthar Block in 2009 which started production in 2013. "This was the first- ever gas produced from a "Tight Gas" reservoir in Pakistan," he claimed.

In 2015, Piotr said, the company discovered the Rizq Gas field which was the second Tight Gas Field in Kirthar Block and commissioned the Rehman Production Facility with a capacity of processing up to 40 million standard cubic feet of gas per day (mmscfd) gas.

"PGNiG more than doubled its production from the Kirthar block when gas from Rizq Gas Field was added to the national grid in November 2016, which helped to reduce the increasing demand-supply gas for natural gas in the country," he remarked.

Piotr said two more development well have been planned at the already mature Rehman Gas field, an appraisal well on the new Rizq gas Field and an exploratory well to test a potential prospect in the northern side of the block.

He said the company has so far invested more than 125 million dollars in Pakistan, adding that current daily production from the Rehman field stood at 24 mmscfd from four producing wells, which would be increased up to 90 mmscfd gas with full field development.

He said the increase in production requires advanced technologies (horizontal wells, multiple transverse hydraulic fracturing, etc) for which an investment of more than $ 300 million would be made.

"PGNiG is in active pursuit to increase its footprint in the Pakistani's upstream oil and gas sector and is also interested to develop the shale gas deposits here," he remarked.

Polish ambassador Piotr Opalinski also spoke on the occasion and highlighted different aspects of bilateral relations between Poland and Pakistan.

The envoy astonished the participants when he started speaking in Urdu language after delivering some introductory remarks in English.

He said Poland was keen to have good relations with Pakistan in diverse field and expressed confidence that the bilateral ties would further strengthen in the coming days.

The ambassador said the environment was conducive for foreign investment in Pakistan and expressed the firm resolve that Poland would accelerate oil and gas exploration activities to meet energy need of Pakistan.