Pakistan’s oil and gas reserves see first growth since 2020

New data shows that the country’s known oil and gas reserves have grown — for the first time since 2020. Modest in absolute terms, the turnaround may not be an inflection point, but it does provide at least a temporary respite from a years-long decline in domestic energy prospects and bringing hope to a country grappling with surging import bills and chronic supply shortfalls.

According to Arif Habib Ltd.’s latest report on Pakistan’s hydrocarbon sector, total oil reserves surged by 23% year-on-year, from 193 million barrels in December 2023 to 238 million barrels as of December 2024. Gas reserves remained stable at 18,142 billion cubic feet (bcf) — a marginal increase from the previous year’s 18,109 bcf, but crucially, a break in the multi-year downtrend that had seen domestic production capacities steadily deteriorate.

The revival, analysts say, is being powered by an uptick in new discoveries and upward revisions in reserve estimates at a range of smaller and mid-sized fields — an unexpected silver lining in what has otherwise been a bleak energy outlook.