The Prime Minister's Secretariat has reportedly played a vital role in the appointment of Shah Mehbub Aalam as the Acting Managing Director of Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), a man who has been accused of lacking the required qualification and experience.
Sources told Business Recorder that Aalam earlier worked as security incharge in the Prime Minister's House. "He has no relevant qualifications or experience in the oil and gas fields," sources added. Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources recently notified the appointment of new acting MD/CEO of the OGDCL as the sitting boss of the company applied for a seven-week sick leave.
The proposal to appoint a three-man committee instead of one man to head the organisation for the seven weeks was dropped. "The Petroleum Ministry was under immense pressure from Prime Minister Secretariat to entrust the acting charge to Shah Mehbub Aalam," sources said adding that OGDCL has already failed to achieve the set targets of drilling wells and the acting MD will add to the miseries of the company due to a serious lack of experience in the concerned field.
The OGDCL controls about 45 percent of the country's oil reserves and 35 per cent of natural gas reserves. And its share in the country's oil production is 61 per cent and its gas output accounts for 25 percent of the national gas production.
The oil production of the OGDCL has declined from about 54,000 barrels per day (BPD) to about 37,500 BPD in almost 18 months while gas production has come down from about 1,200 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) to less than 1,000 MMCFD. As of December 22, the OGDCL was able to spud only six wells against a target of 42 wells, set for the year ending June 30, 2010.
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