The plant, built to support the production facilities of the Bhit gas field – in which we have a 40 per cent stake as operator – provides green energy in an off-grid configuration, storing the energy produced by the system and making it available as needed. This energy is used directly by the adjacent industrial site, reducing gas consumption and avoiding the release into the atmosphere of more than 144,000 tonnes of CO₂ over the lifetime of the plant. The installation has a peak capacity of 10 MW and will produce approximately 20 GWh of energy per annum. The plant entered service in November 2019, which means we achieved a time-to-market of just seven months following the final investment decision in March of the same year. The Bhit photovoltaic project adds value to our traditional operations in Pakistan and confirms our commitment to a low-carbon emissions scenario in which renewable energy is fully integrated into the company’s energy mix. 

Workplace safety is a fundamental principle that we share with employees, contract workers and local communities. For that reason, we implement all necessary measures to avoid accidents, including organisational models to assess and manage risk, training programmes, skills development and the promotion of a culture of safety.

In 2019, we also organised a number of training seminars in Pakistan on security and respect for human rights. These were designed for our in-house staff and for private companies providing security services, and were attended by around 230 people. This initiative is part of a broader training project, launched in 2010, to promote best corporate practice. Such practices are based on the international principles approved by the United Nations in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which have inspired our own Guidelines for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights, implemented in all the countries in which we operate.

We have been successful – both technically and economically – in creating a hybrid renewable energy system, developing synergies between gas and green energy. The Bhit plant integrates the photovoltaic installation with an existing electricity-generating system, enabling us to turn off one of the gas turbines and make savings in operating costs. The project, one of the first of its kind in the world, will also make it possible to free up and sell the gas saved in this way.