Govt seeks $30b for gas production

Pakistan on Tuesday made a pitch for a $30 billion foreign and local investment in gas production aimed at puncturing a ballooning energy import bill projected to nearly double to $31 billion in seven years in a business-as-usual scenario.

The appeal was made to foreign investors in presence of interim Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar and Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir.

If materialised, it will be the biggest investment in the energy sector after about $20 billion invested in power generation by Beijing under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Pakistan has 235 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas reserves and 10% of it can be explored with an investment of $25 billion to $30 billion in the next one decade to reverse the current declining production of gas and replace the import of energy, said Energy Minister Mohammad Ali.