Dera Ismail Khan, 28 December 2022 (TDI): The Ministry of Energy of Pakistan discovered new reserves of gas and condensate from an exploratory well in the Dera Ismail Khan district on Tuesday.
The reserves were found in the frontier region of Dera from an exploration well known as 92 Kot Palak-1 (FR). The discovery, according to the Ministry’s official announcement, was made in collaboration with private partners.
The private companies include Baska North Block (3169-4) comprising Al-Haj Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd as operator (10.85pc), Al-Haj Pakistan Kirthar B.V (85pc) and the Government Holdings (Private) Ltd (4.15pc).
The well was bored 3,527 meters deep. Drilling produced the identification of prospective hydrocarbon-bearing zones.
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They have 39.12 million standard cubic feet per day of gas reserves, 1,840 barrels of condensate per day, and 32.8 barrels of water per day.
The discovery will help Pakistan reduce its dependency on oil and gas imports by bridging the energy demand and supply gap with indigenous resources. It would increase the country’s hydrocarbon reserves.
The exploratory well was spudded on May 7, 2022, and drilled to a depth of 3,527 meters on November 18, 2022. On June 26, this year, the state-owned Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) began exploring oil and gas reserves.
Notably, this is the 15th oil and gas finding of the current calendar year. The discovery comes at a time when Pakistan is facing an energy crisis. Its reserves are depleting, and the country is struggling to procure petroleum cargo.
Oil reserves in Punjab
In October, Oil, and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), announced the discovery of oil reserves from its exploratory well. It was located in Punjab.
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The company announced that OGDCL discovered oil in the Lockhart Formation at the Toot Deep-I well. It is located in Attock District in the Punjab Province of Pakistan.
Based on the interpretation of data, 882 barrels per day (BPD) of oil and 0.93 million standard cubic feet per day (MMSCFD) of gas were successfully tested.
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