Pakistan establishes Energy Council to address energy challenges

[News_Editor]

Pakistan establishes Energy Council to address energy challenges

2011-04-12 01:27:30 GMT+7 (ICT)

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani on Sunday announced the creation of a Government-Industry Energy Council to address the nation's energy issues.

According to the APP news agency, Gilani said that the council was formed as energy represents an essential driver of the Pakistani economy. The announcement came during the inaugural session of the three-day Energy Conference.

In addition, it was announced that the Petroleum Institute of Pakistan will be a permanent member of the council which will also make far-reaching recommendations for the government.

Gilani remarked that a strategic partnership between the government and the energy sector is required to impulse Pakistan's energy sector and overcoming the current issues and improving economy.

Furthermore, foreign investments and international joint ventures will also benefit Pakistan's energy industry, added Gilani. In Pakistan, the energy demand is expected to double in the next 15 years.

"Fuelling the future therefore requires finding new oil and gas reserves through aggressive exploration activities, optimizing production from existing fields by applying cutting-edge technology, enabling gas imports from across the borders via regional pipelines and LNG shipments," added the PM.

According to the Premier, Pakistan is an energy-deficit country as nearly 90 percent of its oil requirement came from imports. The Government intends to import natural gas via LNG and regional pipelines in the near future to address this issue.

The development of local energy sources is a high priority for the Pakistani government as the Asian nation has a vast coal and natural gas reserves in Sindh that can be exploited.

During the event, PM Gilani also formally launched the 2011 Pakistan Energy Outlook Document in which it is detailed that the country's energy supply currently comes primarily from natural gas (45 percent) and oil imports (35 percent). The remaining fuel is taken from hydel (12 percent), coal (6 percent) and nuclear (2 percent).

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