UPDATE: Eni Wins New Onshore Gas Concession In Pakistan

Eni SpA (E) has won an exploration license for Pakistan's onshore Sukhpur block and is in long-term talks with Islamabad to bring gas from the Caspian Sea to Pakistan, India and China, Chief Executive Paolo Scaroni said Wednesday after a meeting in Rome with a Pakistani delegation.

Eni's partners at Sukhpur block will be Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSA) and local player Pakistan Petroleum Ltd. (PPL), the company in a statement Wednesday.

"This block is very promising and its close to the other two producing areas in which we operate," Scaroni said, adding Eni aims to bring gas from Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan to Pakistan, India and China.

"That would reshape the economic geography of the area," Scaroni said.

Earlier this year, Eni said it expected to double its hydrocarbon output in Pakistan in five to six years after signing a protocol with the Asian country to give it exclusive access.

Eni has been present in Pakistan since 2000 and is the biggest international company operating in the country in terms of exploration and production of gas, with an equity production of 56,000 barrels a day, the company said in its statement.

-By Chiara Vasarri and Giada Zampano, 39 06 6976 6920; [e-mail]