By Admin 
Pakistan’s state oil company Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) has announced the discovery of new reserves of oil and gas in Kohat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. This discovery was made from the exploratory well named Baragzai X-01 (Slant). This is the third discovery within a month, which is expected to lead to a big increase in Pakistan’s domestic oil production.
Production of thousands of barrels of crude oil daily
This well was dug on 30 December 2024. Then testing was done through cased hole drill system from Samana Suq and Shinawari Formation. Test results have revealed daily production of 3100 barrels of crude oil and 8.15 million standard cubic feet of natural gas. This is happening with a wellhead flowing pressure of 3010 pounds per square inch at 32/64 inch choke size.
Pakistan has lead in oil and gas production
This is the third discovery within a month and with these three discoveries, Pakistan’s domestic oil production has increased by a total of 9480 barrels per day. This is about 14.5 percent of the country’s current production (about 66,000 barrels per day). Apart from this, there has also been a good increase in gas production. OGDCL has given this information by giving notice to Pakistan Stock Exchange. OGDCL has 65 percent stake in this project, while Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) has 30 percent and Government Holdings Private Limited (GHPL) has 5 percent carried interest.
Why is this discovery important for Pakistan?
Pakistan is struggling with energy crisis and economic difficulties. To reduce dependence on expensive imports, the government is emphasizing on increasing domestic oil and gas production. OGDCL says that this discovery will reduce the gap between supply and demand of energy from domestic resources and will increase the country’s hydrocarbon reserves. Last year the government signed 5 new exploration deals. An auction of 40 offshore blocks was held in November 2025, where 23 bids came from 4 consortia. An agreement was signed for initial investment of 80 million dollars, which can reach 1 billion dollars in future.