Eni merges two gas concessions in Egypt
Italian energy company Eni said June 15 that it reached an agreement to merge two of its natural gas concessions in Egypt.
The company signed an agreement with the Egyptian government, Egyptian General Petroleum Corp. and Russian energy company Lukoil for the merger of concessions at the Meleiha and Meleiha Deep fields onshore.
“The agreement, which marks another important result for Eni in the prolific basin of the Egyptian Western Desert, will unlock, through enhanced contractual terms, the area’s considerable resources, thanks to a high-resolution 3D seismic acquisition and an intensive exploration and development drilling campaign,” the company said.
Egyptian gas production is expected to climb by as much as 9% in the fiscal year starting July 2021, averaging 7.2bn ft3/day.
Tariq al-Mulla, the Egyptian minister of petroleum and mineral resources, said via teleconference on March 14 that the nation’s gas potential put it at a competitive edge in the region.
Egypt became a net importer of natural gas in 2015 due to increased demand and dwindling output. But thanks to rising offshore production, it now has gas spare and wants to position itself as a regional energy hub.
Egypt has fast-tracked gas developments offshore. The Eni-operated Zohr project, with an estimated 30 trillion ft3 in place, is the largest gas field in the Mediterranean. It was discovered in 2015 and commissioned just two years later.