KARACHI: Pakistan Petroleum Limited hopes to hit hydrocarbon reserves soon at an Iraqi well where it began drilling in April this year, the company’s executive officer said on Monday, saying it hoped to share good news soon with shareholders about PPL’s first overseas exploration well.
“The current depth of the well is 4,232 meters and the final depth is 5,000 meters,” PPL managing director and CEO Moin Raza Khan said about Iraq’s Madian-1 operated Block 8 where the company is drilling for reserves. “The drilling process will come to an end within the next three months. We are going to catch the reserves pretty soon.”
In 2012, PPL initiated a contract with Iraq’s government to explore hydrocarbon reserves as an operator in an area spanning 6,000 square kilometers in Iraq’s Diyala and Wasit governorates.
“The cost of digging the overseas exploration well in Iraq is $27 million, an amount that has already been allocated,” Khan said. “Our budget is around Rs40-45 billion for exploration and other activities.”
Khan said PPL was expanding its mining operations in Pakistan as part of its diversification strategy. “For this purpose, the company is finalizing the feasibility study of barytes, lead and zinc project to further strengthen its mining portfolio,” he added.
The CEO said he had held a meeting with Saudi investors recently in which mining projects were discussed. He said PPL was also exploring options for initiating joint ventures with Chinese companies as part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
“Ten days ago, we identified a number of blocks that fell on the CPEC route while talking to Chinese representatives about them,” Khan said “Such ventures will add value to the company in terms of technology transfer.”
PPL achieved its highest profit of Rs61.6 billion along with a record number of 11 discoveries during 2018-19 in different areas of Pakistan. The company announced a cash dividend of 20 percent on ordinary and convertible preference shares as well as 20 percent bonus shares to ordinary shareholders and 10 percent to convertible preference shareholders. The rupee devaluation has also helped the company increase its revenue.
PPL has also partnered with three other explorers, including ExxonMobil, for much publicized offshore drilling in the Arabian Sea at Kekra-1, which eventually failed to yield any oil and gas reserves.
“PPL drilled 30 exploratory and development wells, including in Kekra-1, in partner-operated offshore Indus G block which encountered excellent quality reservoir but was aborted due to difficulty in locating hydrocarbons,” Khan told shareholders on Monday.
Pakistan Petroleum hopes to ‘soon’ hit hydrocarbon reserves in Iraq project
Pakistan Petroleum hopes to ‘soon’ hit hydrocarbon reserves in Iraq project
- Company recently met with Saudi investors to discuss mining projects, CEO says
- Exploring options for joint initiatives with Chinese companies as part of CPEC
Pakistan’s National Assembly appoints Mahmood Achakzai as opposition leader after months of delay
- The position had been vacant for almost five months since the disqualification of ex-PM Imran Khan’s aide Omar Ayub
- Opposition previously accused government of delaying appointment, but government said that the matter was sub judice
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, on Friday appointed Mahmood Khan Achakzai as the leader of the opposition, an official notification said, following months of delay in appointment on the key post.
The position had been vacant for almost five months since the disqualification of Omar Ayub, a member of former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, in Aug. 2025 after his conviction in cases relating to violent riots in May 2023.
Khan had later nominated Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) Chairman Mahmood Khan Achakzai and PTI’s Azam Swati for the post of opposition leaders in the National Assembly and Senate, the upper house of Pakistan parliament, according to the PTI.
An opposition leader plays a central role in ensuring parliamentary oversight and democratic accountability. He scrutinizes government policies, legislation and executive actions, raising concerns on behalf of citizens and highlighting alternative viewpoints.
“In pursuance of rule 39 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly, Honorable Speaker has been pleased to declare Mehmood Khan Achakzai... as leader of the opposition in the National Assembly,” the NA Secretariat said in a notification.
Beyond legislative oversight, the opposition leader carries an important consultative role in major state appointments, including the prime minister, chief election commissioner and caretaker governments, and fosters dialogue between the treasury and the opposition.
The appointment of Achakzai, who also heads the Tehreek-e-Tahafuz-e-Ayeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) opposition alliance, was announced after Speaker Ayaz Sadiq’s meeting with PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Chief Whip Amir Dogar on Friday.
The opposition had previously accused the government of delaying Achakzai’s appointment, but the NA speaker said at the time the matter was sub judice — an apparent reference to Ayub’s appeals against his disqualification in courts.
Ayub later withdrew his petitions and the NA Secretariat subsequently sent a letter to PTI Chief Whip Dogar in Dec., seeking details about the status of cases concerning Ayub. Dogar submitted the required documents to the NA speaker this month, following which the constitutional process for the appointment of the next opposition leader was initiated.
“It is reassuring to see that due process has been followed and Mr.Achakzai has been appointed as Leader of the Opposition,” PTI member Zulfikar Bukhari said in a statement. “Like Imran Khan, the entire party has full faith in him.”
