UK company Capricorn to drill 44 oil wells in Egypt

UK company Capricorn Energy will drill 44 oil wells in Egypt’s Western Desert as part of a five-year exploration plan.

The Edinburgh-based company will launch the project in a concession area of nearly 6,200 square kilometres in line with an agreement signed in Cairo on Tuesday.

Egypt’s petroleum and mineral resources minister Karim Badawi oversaw the signing of the deal between Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) and partners Capricorn and Cairo-based Cheiron.

“The deal will involve investment of at least $208 million over five years to expand exploration, development and production activities, including drilling 44 wells,” the ministry said in a statement.

Under the agreement, eight concession areas operated by Badr El-Din Petroleum Company – a joint venture between EGPC, Cheiron and Capricorn – will be merged, alongside new exploration zones.

This will bring the total concession area to 6,181 sq km, enabling intensified exploration and development to boost oil and gas output and add new reserves.

“The agreement reflects the ministry’s efforts to attract foreign investment and create a favourable climate for partners in the Western Desert, Egypt’s most important crude-oil-producing region,” the ministry said.

The work programme includes upgrading production infrastructure at the Badr-3 processing plant, reprocessing seismic data and conducting a 3D seismic survey over 500 sq km, it added.

The agreement is expected to “strengthen exploration and production plans in Badr El-Din’s areas, opening new horizons for petroleum and gas reserves and supporting Egypt’s drive to increase domestic energy production.”

Egypt, the third-largest Arab economy, has been trying to reverse a decline in its hydrocarbon production and reserves due to lack of development projects and a surge in domestic consumption.

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In January, Badawi said the ministry intends to unveil a new package of incentives to encourage oil companies to intensify operations and to attract fresh investments in the hydrocarbon sector.

Badawi also unveiled a five-year plan to invest $5.7 billion in oil operations, involving the drilling of 480 oil wells.

Egyptian officials said in late 2025 there is a plan to boost the country’s crude output by nearly 60,000 barrels per day over the next two years

Egypt’s extractable crude oil and gas deposits are estimated by the Kuwaiti-based Arab Energy Organization at 3.3 billion barrels and 2.1 trillion cubic metres respectively.