Pakistan Petroleum to Build Artificial Island for Offshore Oil and Gas Exploration

Pakistan Petroleum Ltd. (PPL), the state-owned energy company, is constructing an artificial island off the coast of Sindh to accelerate offshore oil and gas exploration, a senior company official told Bloomberg. The island, located about 30 kilometers (19 miles) from Sujawal, will serve as a launchpad for drilling operations, according to Arshad Palekar, PPL’s General Manager for Exploration and Core Business Development. Speaking at an oil and gas conference in Islamabad, Palekar said the six-foot-high platform is designed to withstand high tides and enable uninterrupted, round-the-clock exploration. Pakistan’s offshore drilling push has picked up pace after U.S. President Donald Trump highlighted the country’s “massive oil reserves” in a social media post in July. Since then, the government has awarded new offshore exploration licenses to PPL, Mari Energies Ltd., and Prime International Oil and Gas Co. The project marks a first for Pakistan and draws on Abu Dhabi’s experience with artificial islands for drilling, Palekar said. Construction is expected to finish in February, with drilling operations to begin immediately afterward. PPL plans to drill about 25 wells from the new platform.