Pakistan grants Mari oil exploration licences

ISLAMABAD, June 21 (Reuters) Pakistan on Wednesday granted three licenses to a domestic petroleum firm to carry out exploration for oil and gas in the south and southwest of the country.

Mari Gas Company Limited (MGCL) was awared the rights to explore in three blocks -- Sujawal, Harnai and Hanna -- in Sindh and Baluchistan provinces for three years, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources said.

The minimum financial commitment in the three blocks will be more than .62 million, the ministry said in a statement.

During the first phase, the company will undertake geological studies, seismic fieldwork and drilling of two exploration wells, the ministry said.

The area of the three concessions was 5,800 square km (2,240 sq mile), the ministry said.

Mari Gas Company, which is listed on Pakistan's main Karachi Stock Exchange <.kse>, operates the country's second largest gas field, Mari Gas Field in Sindh province. It also has three mining leases.

Pakistan's liberal exploration policy has attracted interest from domestic as well as foreign firms in recent years, making oil and gas the country's largest investment area.

Last week, state-run Pakistan Oilfield Ltd. won an exploration licence for the Kirthar South block in Sindh and Baluchistan.

Pakistan imports 85 percent of its energy needs, including about billion worth of oil a year.

It is struggling to increase domestic oil production of about 63,000 barrels per day, which it hopes to raise to 100,000 bpd within five years.

The government estimates the country has 27 billion barrels reserves of oil and 280 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

REUTERS DKS HS1822