Egyptian General Petroleum Corp. (EGPC) has signed an agreement with Italian energy group Eni for oil exploration in the Gulf of Suez and Nile Delta regions. The deal is valued at no less than $1 billion of investments, the petroleum ministry said in late December.
The agreement also included a commitment from Eni to additionally spend “not less than $20 million” to drill four wells, the ministry added in a statement.
The deal comes as part of the ministry’s strategy to increase production rates and to attempt to offset the natural decline of wells by using the latest technologies in oil-producing areas.
Last October, Eni announced three new discoveries in the Meleiha and South West Meleiha concessions in the Western Desert. Eni has been operating in Egypt since 1954 with a current production of about 360,000 BOED.