KUFPEC Inks Exploration Agreement for Pakistan's Paharpur Block

Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company K.S.C. (KUFPEC) signed an exploration license and petroleum concession agreement with Pakistan, with the South Asian state awarding the Kuwaiti firm exploration rights in the Paharpur Block in the country, according to Kuwait News Agency Friday.

The deal was inked by KUFPEC CEO Sheikh Nawaf Saud Al-Nasser Al-Sabah and Pakistan's Secretary for Petroleum and Natural Resources Arshad Mirza in a signing ceremony in Islamabad witnessed by Pakistan Minister of Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

The Paharpur Block, located in the D.I. Khan District spread over an area of approximately 873 square miles (2,261 square kilometers), will be KUFPEC's second operated asset in Pakistan and its first in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, company CEO Sheikh Nawaf said.

The Kuwaiti partners in the Paharpur Block are State Oil and Gas Company of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other national exploration and production companies of Pakistan, he added.

KUFPEC currently operates the Jati Exploration Block in Sindh, where drilling activities are expected to commence soon. The firm also has producing interests in Qadirpur, Zamzama, Kadanwari, Bhit, Badhra, Sukhpur and Zarghun Blocks, and is the third largest gas producer amongst foreign exploration and production companies operating in Pakistan.

KUFPEC has invested more than $1 billion in Pakistan since 1987 in "our efforts to make Pakistan a core business center for KUFPEC," Sheikh Nawaf said.

KUFPEC, a subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, is an international oil company engaged in the exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas outside Kuwait. It is currently active in 15 countries worldwide with 63 oil and gas projects across Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe and North America.