Pakistan and Turkey partner to explore offshore energy resources

Pakistan and Turkey signed a joint bidding agreement Tuesday to collaborate on exploring offshore oil and gas in Pakistani waters, marking a significant step in energy cooperation between the two nations.

The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Pakistan Minerals Investment Forum 2025.

It allows both countries to jointly participate in Pakistan's ongoing offshore bid round, launched in February, which offers 40 exploration blocks in the Makran and Indus basins.

Pakistan's Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik and Turkey's Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, witnessed the signing ceremony.

Three leading Pakistani exploration and production companies—Mari Energies Ltd., Oil and Gas Development Co. Ltd. (OGDCL), and Pakistan Petroleum Ltd. (PPL)—signed the agreement with Turkey's state-owned Türkiye Petrolleri Anonim Ortaklığı (TPAO).

"This partnership will bring in foreign direct investment and leverage advanced technologies to tap Pakistan's offshore resources," Malik said, expressing high hopes for the Pakistan-Turkey collaboration.

He added that seismic surveys have shown promising signs of offshore oil and gas reserves.

Bayraktar praised Pakistan's efforts in hosting the investment forum and emphasized the importance of international cooperation in energy development.