OGDCL, Chinese company likely to expedite operations in Balochistan

Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) is likely to go into a joint venture with Poly-GCL Petroleum Group of China to expedite exploration of potential oil and gas in Balochistan province. The country's largest oil and gas exploration company, OGDCL, has already awarded several contracts to a Chinese firm in Balochistan to conduct seismic surveys to expedite oil and gas recovery.
In a steering committee meeting on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) - held a few weeks ago in Beijing on the sideline of the sixth meeting of Pak China Joint Co-operation Committee (JCC) with Chief Ministers of the four provinces it was decided to offer the oil and gas sector to Chinese companies. The Steering Committee on CPEC is headed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and includes all the Chief Ministers of Provinces.
To follow up the decision made in China, a Pakistani delegation, led by OGDCL Managing Director, Zahid Mir, Executive Director (Joint Venture) Masood Nabi and other senior officers from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources, left for China on Friday to hold initial talks with Chinese oil and gas companies.
The government has sent this high level delegation to China with the scheduled departure a secret, as 'it is premature' given that talks with China on this issue are at a preliminary stage, sources added. Poly-GCL Petroleum Group has reportedly entered into a $500 million join venture with Ocean Pakistan Limited (OPL) for exploration of oil/gas sector in Sindh - the collaboration is focused on enhancing oil/gas production from depleting fields such as Zamama field which was once producing over 500 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) but now its production is 150 mmcfd. The Zamzama Block in Sindh province has potential recoverable gas reservoirs of 300 billion cubic feet (bcf).