ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Energy Omar Ayub Khan was informed on Wednesday that some Czech oil and gas companies has shown interest in LNG business in Pakistan.
The matter came under discussion in a meeting held between Minister for Energy Omar Ayub Khan and Tomas Smetanka, Ambassador of Republic of Czech in Pakistan, here on Wednesday.
The minister had a comprehensive discussion on outlook of energy sector and energy market here in Pakistan.
The Czech ambassador explored the areas of mutual discussion in energy sector including investment in oil sector and business in the LNG supply chain for group of Czech companies visiting Pakistan by the end of March, 2021.
The minister also highlighted the government’s robust policies to revamp the petroleum and power sector of the country.
He said the government was fully committed to diversify the outlook of energy market, while making it more competitive and efficient.
The minister briefed about the Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP) 2030 which emphasised on increasing the share of indigenous sources on basis of amount, time and location, while reducing the reliance on imported fuel.
He further highlighted that the IGCEP would forge additional renewable capacity i.e. 60 percent power generation from biomass, solar and wind; 30 percent from hydel, 10 percent each from thermal and nuclear power plants.
The minister also dilated upon the exploration and production activities in Pakistan and said that recently the government had carried out the bidding of 15 oil and gas blocks and minimum investment in those Blocks would be over USD 71 million in three years, additionally, the development programmes worth hundred million dollars would be extended by the E&P companies in located areas.
He said the government would be offering more new oil and gas blocks by the end of this year and it was a part of strategy of the incumbent government to revive E&P activities in the country which had been ignored by previous governments.
He further said the government also aimed at self-sufficiency in oil and gas and harnessing maximum potential of energy resources in country by introducing ease-of-doing-business and transparency to ensure a level-playing field for all competitors in the energy sector.
The minister also held a separate meeting with Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi, Ambassador of United Arab Emirates in Pakistan.
In the meeting, both discussed the on-going cooperation in the petroleum sector and explored the priority areas of mutual interest in the energy sector of Pakistan.
The ambassador expressed his interest to further investment in the energy sector of Pakistan.
He said the collaboration in energy sector would provide an impetus to economic ties between brotherly countries.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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