Pakistan seeks US investment in LNG

[LahoreEstate]

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is seeking US investment to establish a liquefied natural gas project to meet the short-term energy requirements of the country.

This was stated by the Petroleum Minister, Syed Naveed Qamar, during a meeting with US Special Representative Richard Halbrooke.

The minister, who discussed bilateral energy cooperation and investment opportunities in the country, gave an overview of fuel demand-supply gap, and said significant progress had been made to meet oil and gas demand, particularly in the short and medium term, especially through LNG imports.

Mr Qamar informed that the matter would soon be presented before the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) for approval.

However, sources in the finance ministry told Dawn that two proposals have been made by the petroleum ministry for LNG imports. The first project is extension of Mashal project of Sui Southern Gas Company, which would have a land-based re-gasification unit, while the price of LNG would be less, compared to the other project, but its commissioning would take a long time. The second proposal pertains to provision of gas by a major European company in the SSGC system by establishing a floating re-gasification unit in Karachi. The second option is fast track provision of gas but the cost would be much higher and the ministry has forwarded both the proposals to the ECC for approval.

In the meeting with US delegation, Naveed Qamar spoke about the interest shown by Overseas Private Investment Cooperation (OPIC) of the US for supporting LNG import projects in Pakistan and other energy related projects.

“Many operators with US equity were showing increasing interest, especially for short and medium-term energy projects,” said Naveed Qamar.

Mr Halbrooke said Pakistan is an important country and meeting Pakistan’s requirements is top US priority.

He said that the US government is keen to address the country’s need by extending support in areas of oil and gas and water.

During the meeting, views were shared on matters of bilateral cooperation and mutual interest, with particular focus on ongoing cooperation in the field of energy between the two countries.

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn...-410-za-07