ISLAMABAD:
The adjustments that were recommended by the Petroleum Division in the Petroleum Policy 2012 were accepted by the Council of Common Interests (CCI) on Monday. The purpose of these amendments was to encourage the exploration of new oil and gas reserves.
Awaarul Haq Kakar, who is now serving as the caretaker Prime Minister, presided over the 51st meeting of the CCI.
As a result of the modification to the petroleum policy, the gas exploration corporations would be permitted to continue using the licenses they currently possess in order to look for oil and gas deposits.
The suggestion made by the Petroleum Division to provide oil and gas businesses operating in the 1(F) petroleum zone with a greater wellhead price was also approved by the Petroleum Commission of India.
Due to the challenging terrain and the absence of amenities in the southern border regions of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, the process of exploring oil and gas reserves in the 1(F) zone was a challenging and costly endeavor.
Prior to the reservoirs becoming economically viable, the council gave its approval for the activation of leases for oil and gas leasing. Additionally, the draft of the Exploration and Production Policy 2024 for Tight Gas was adopted by the committee.
In addition to the legal framework for its utilization, the policy included specifics concerning the prices of tight gas, incentives for the encouragement of exploration, and other related matters.
The natural gas reservoir known as tight gas was a type of natural gas reservoir that could not be extracted using conventional methods. In order to extract tight gas, gas wells are drilled using higher than typical hydraulic pressure, as well as expensive equipment and technology.
An estimate that was considered to be conservative suggested that there were 35 trillion cubic feet of tight gas reserves accessible in the country. This information was presented to the meeting.
In accordance with the modifications that were made to the new policy, the CCI gave its approval to an increase in the tariff for the sale of natural gas to a third party on a commercial basis from ten percent to thirty-five percent. This would be beneficial in terms of reducing the circular debt.
Representatives from four province chief ministers, as well as high-level officials, were present at the meeting. The caretaker federal ministers for finance, privatization, law and justice were also present. The APP
