Egypt finds gas and oil reserves in Western Desert

Egypt has announced an oil and natural gas discovery in the Western Desert that should boost domestic production and reduce import costs.

The exploratory well has an estimated reserve of 330 billion cubic feet of gas and 10 million barrels of condensate and crude oil, totalling 70 million barrels of oil equivalent, the petroleum ministry said.

The well is the largest discovery in the past 15 years by Agiba Petroleum Company, a joint venture between state-owned Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation and Italy’s Eni.

The well is only 10km from existing facilities and infrastructure, which will allow rapid development and for production to begin quickly, the ministry said in a statement published by the cabinet.

Earlier this month Cairo confirmed a natural gas discovery in the Nile Delta, with the well’s production capacity estimated at 50 million cubic feet per day in the West Abu Madi concession area.

In January Egypt announced five new exploratory wells, which are expected to add around 47 million cubic feet of natural gas, as well as 4,300 barrels of crude and condensate, to the country’s daily production.

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• Egypt to clear $1bn debt to oil companies by June

Cairo launched a seismic survey in December last year to explore for oil and gas in areas that account for nearly 10 percent of the country’s land mass.

The country plans to drill 101 oil and gas wells this year, as part of a $5.7 billion investment approved by the government in 2025 to start drilling 480 wells over the next five years.

Prime minister Mostafa Madbouly said in March that the country’s gas import bill had increased by $1.1 billion a month since the outbreak of the Iran war.