International oil giant, Shell Petroleum Company, discovered a new gas field in Alam El Shawish concession area in the Western Desert, informed Egypt Oil&Gas citing Shell Egypt’s press release.

The new well (BTE-2) is estimated to contain 0.5tcf of gas, with the possibility that the quantities may increase, which makes it the biggest gas discovery in the Egyptian Western Desert in the last few years, stated Shell’s Chairman and CEO, Aidan Murphy.

The new discovery would contribute with 10% to 15% of the total production of Badr El Din Petroleum Company, which is a joint venture between Shell and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), Murphy explained.

Shell CEO added that “the new discovery of the well (BTE-2) is a result of the implementation of the latest technologies during the phase of the seismic survey and it related processes, in addition to drilling one of the deepest wells in the Western Desert.”

Shell was granted the exploration rights in the area in 2012 and the agreement was signed by the end of 2013 with the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and EGPC.