Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek al-Molla signed on Wednesday four new petroleum agreements for the exploration and production of oil and natural gas in the Western Desert, the Gulf of Suez and the Nile Valley, with minimum investments of US$155 million and signature bonuses of about $10.5 million.
The agreements include drilling 30 oil wells.
Molla said that President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called to continue expanding and increasing research and exploration plans, to achieve the optimum economic benefit from all natural resources.
The Petroleum Ministry is working to this end through plans and work programs, offering new global bids and making more petroleum agreements, Molla said.
He added that with the signing of these agreements, the number of agreements made by Petroleum Ministry with investors and partners since June 30, 2013 has reached 103 petroleum agreements.
Four other agreements will be signed later, the Minister said, in addition to nine new agreements that have been approved by the House of Representatives.
The first agreement is in the southeastern Siwa concession area in the Western Desert with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) and the IEOC company with a minimum investment of about $17 million and a signature bonus of about $1.2 million to drill four new oil wells.
The second agreement is in the West Razak Development Concession Area in the Western Desert with the EGPC and the IEOC company with a minimum investment of approximately $34 million, and a signature bonus of five million dollars to drill 13 new oil wells.
The third agreement is in the North Beni Suef concession area of the Nile Valley region with the EGPC and Merlon Petroleum al-Fayoum Company, with a minimum investment of about $36 million and a signature bonus of $2.3 million to drill eight new oil wells.
The fourth agreement in the concession area southeast of Ras al-Ush in the Gulf of Suez between the Ganoub al-Wadi Petroleum Holding Company and the Pacific Oil Limited and ZNP companies, with a minimum investment of about $68 million and a signature bonus of two million dollars to drill five new oil wells.
Molla stressed the importance of the petroleum sector’s sustainability by signing new petroleum agreements, which contributes to strengthening and maximizing the reserves and production of Egypt’s oil and gas so that the petroleum sector continues to be an important source in attracting foreign investments and supporting the economy.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
