Pakistan has recently made a major discovery of gas reserves in the Shewa fields located in North Waziristan. These reserves are estimated to contain around 351.2 billion cubic feet of gas. This discovery is significant because it is expected to provide gas for the next 17 years.
Plans are in place to extract 70 million cubic feet of gas per day from the Shewa-2 well and add it to the country’s national gas supply.
The increase in gas production is likely to boost Pakistan’s daily gas output by more than 3%. This is an important development, as it will help the country reduce its dependence on expensive fuel imports. By using more locally-produced gas, Pakistan can save a large amount of foreign exchange that would otherwise be spent on buying fuel from other countries.
According to Mari Petroleum’s 2024 Annual Report, the company is making progress on its goal of supplying 70 mmcfd of gas from Shewa-2 to the national grid.
This will be done through a new pipeline built by Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited. Sunny Kumar, a research analyst from Topline Research, mentioned that the pipeline is currently undergoing hydrotesting, which is the process of checking its safety and durability.
While the project faced some delays in the past due to security challenges in the region, the pipeline was successfully completed in August 2024. Once the Early Production Facilities are operational and the system is gradually ramped up, the gas will begin to flow into the national grid.
Mari Petroleum’s report emphasizes that this new gas development will not only increase the country’s gas supply by more than 3%, but it will also help the company enhance its production capabilities. This project will also play a role in diversifying Mari Petroleum’s portfolio, which could lead to a significant rise in their revenues.
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