Foreign firms not interested in offshore oil, gas drilling

The National Asse­mbly’s Standing Committee on Energy (Petroleum Division) was informed on Thursday that no company was interested in offshore oil and gas exploration in the country after Kekra-1, an exploratory well, remained dry in 2019. The session was chaired by Syed Mustafa Mehmood, the committee’s chairman. The members enquired about reasons for the lack of interest being shown by international players in the country’s oil and gas sector. Petroleum Minister Musadik Malik informed the standing committee that major oil and gas companies were leaving Pakistan. The minister said global companies turn to countries where it is easy to do business.