Pipedream or stroke of luck? Pakistan finds hope at bottom of the sea
Pakistan is teetering on the brink of bankruptcy, it has got new hope. It has reportedly found a substantial deposit of petroleum and natural gas in its territorial waters. It's said to be so large that it can change the country's destiny. DawnNewsTV has reported that a three-year survey was undertaken in collaboration with a friendly country to verify the presence of the oil and gas reserves.
Pakistan has been struggling with mounting debt and rising inflation for quite some time and has been depending substantially on foreign aid, which is often elusive. To make matters worse, political instability and rising terrorism in some provinces only add to Pakistan's economic plight.
Can the new discovery save Pakistan?
The news of the discovery of oil and gas reserves sure offers hope to Pakistan, but that hope lies buried at the bottom of the sea. It can't help Pakistan tide over its economic crisis in the near future.
A former member of Pakistan's oil and gas regulator told DawnNewsTV that even though the country should remain optimistic, there's never 100 per cent certainty that the reserves would be discovered as expected. When asked if these reserves are enough to meet the country's energy needs, he said it depends on the size and recovery rate of the production. «If this is a gas reserve, it can replace LNG imports and if these are oil reserves, we can substitute imported oil.»
Pakistan's total energy import bill in 2023 was $17.5 billion, projected to nearly double to $31 billion in seven years, as per an
