Khan wants federal govt to invest on KP oil, gas reserves instead of Orange Line

Says foreign companies are ready to invest, but govt not issuing NOC

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday said that instead of investing Rs 200 billion on the Orange Line Train project in Lahore, the federal government should spend the money on the exploration of oil and gas reserves in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

Talking to reporters at the inauguration ceremony of a gas reserve in Matni area of the city, the PTI chief said that KP had enough oil and gas reserves. If these reserves were explored there would be no need to import the two commodities from other countries.

The PTI chief said that American companies were ready to invest Rs 100 billion in KP for exploration of oil and gas but the federal government was not issuing a No-Objection Certificate (NOC).

He asked the federal government to immediately issue the NOC so that work can start on oil and gas exploration in the province.

He alleged that the prime minister was making foreign tours while the federal government was inking deals to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) but nothing was being done to utilise the gas reserves in KP, which could cater to the entire country’s needs.

Khan said that gas reserves had been found at six places in the KP, but the federal government had taken no steps for their exploration. In view of depleting oil and gas reserves in Sindh and Balochistan, their exploration had become even more important, he added.

He said that eight hours of electricity load shedding was being imposed in KP which was causing severe problems to its people whereas electricity prices were also on the rise. There should no politics on issues concerning public, he said.