USAID Support for Privatization Activity: Oil and Gas Related Issues Workshop

The oil and gas sector is the largest contributor to Pakistan's growing economy, both in terms of revenues to the Government of Pakistan and in the primary energy mix. The Cabinet Committee on Privatization has approved the divestment of the Government of Pakistan's shareholdings in nine oil and gas sector entities. The workshop provided an insight into the oil and gas sector of Pakistan, including the latest developments and the role of the sector with reference to the overall energy sector. The facilitator highlighted the key public sector players operating in the oil and gas industry and made the participants familiar with upstream, midstream, and downstream activities in the sector. The workshop also discussed the key issues in the oil and gas sector and proposed solutions. The participants were highly interactive and took great interest in acquiring knowledge of exploration and production operations of oil and gas. They were keen to learn about various terminologies used in the exploration and production operations and were apprised about the policy reforms by the Government of Pakistan in the oil and gas sector. The workshop participants also learned about the important role of the oil and gas sector with reference to the overall energy sector. The Transaction Managers of the Privatisation Commission would find themselves better placed to understand the oil and gas sector of Pakistan and key players operating in the sector after attending the workshop. The workshop would help the Transaction Managers to efficiently handle the transactions relating to the divestment of oil and gas sector entities. The facilitator, Muhammad Rafi, had the required expertise to conduct the workshop, and the environment was conducive to learning. The workshop was highly participative, and the participants rated the session highly, with an average rating of 4.67 out of 5. The content was pertinent to areas of concern, and the facilitator had the required expertise to conduct the workshop. The environment of the workshop was conducive to learning, and the participants found the workshop highly participative. The workshop was conducted on September 22, 2015, at the Privatisation Commission Conference Room, and the facilitator provided an overview of Pakistan's oil and gas sector, including upstream, midstream, and downstream companies. The facilitator also made the participants understand the exploration and production operations, including the flow path of oil and gas exploration, seismic operations, data acquisition and interpretation, well marking and drilling operations. The facilitator provided an idea of the remaining life of oil and gas reserves, kept the participants updated on the indigenous production, highlighted sector-wise gas consumption, and highlighted the share of oil and gas in the overall energy mix of Pakistan. The facilitator also highlighted the incentives announced by the Government of Pakistan for gas producers and made the participants understand about the oil and gas pricing mechanism in Pakistan. The facilitator discussed the issues in the oil and gas sector and the investment opportunities in the oil and gas sector of Pakistan. The PowerPoint presentation used in the workshop is attached, and the sign-in sheet provides a list of the participants who attended the workshop.