A $245-million development plan for Al-Amal Field

Characterized by being one of the very few 100% Egyptian E&P companies, Al-Amal Petroleum Company has succeeded to generate some fruitful results of oil and gas production. Eng. Abdallah Abdel Mawgoud, AMAPETCO CEO, reveals the company’s new development plan, exclusively to Egypt Oil & Gas.

What are the company’s main upcoming projects?
Currently, we are preparing for a development project for the Amal Field, which will be implemented through three main phases. As you know, the company’s production is attained from the offshore Amal Field, 15 km south Ras Shukeir in the Gulf of Suez. The first phase of this project is due to be fully completed by next May 2011, followed by the other two remaining phases.

What is the volume of investments for this project?
The total investments of Al-Amal development project counts for $235 million, out of which $145 million are allocated for the execution of the first phase solely. This phase consists of expanding the onshore processing unit renovation through ENPPI and Petrojet, in addition to the production facilities and installation of 16” gas pipelines that would be linked to the gas processing unit number 104, owned by the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).

What will be your following steps for this mega project?
According to the project scheme, the company will construct a crude oil production line, 16” width – 30 km length, which will link the production facilities of the Suez Oil Company (SUCO) to its concession area at Gebel El-Zeit. This new line will also include 24” and 4” offshore pipelines at the production platform of Al-Amal A in addition to another 8” offshore pipeline between the production platforms of Al-Amal A and Al-Amal B. Negotiations are now held between our company and the Marine Petroleum Services Company to complete the pipelines construction.

How much will the 2nd phase cost?
The second and final phase of this development project will require a total investment of $100 million that will be utilized to install the new onshore production facilities in addition to water injection facilities, gas injections and compressors for natural gas transport. Based on the project time frame, this phase is due to start in June 2011.

What is the company’s oil and gas production rate until now?
The total gas production form Al-Amal field is in the average of 12 to 70 million cubic feet of gas per day, while the crude oil production is approximately 7000-8000 barrels per day.

Is AMAPETCO considering expansions in new concession areas?
There are no new areas for the company in the near future, specially that the company’s Egyptian partner PICO and foreign one Gray Stone approved the financial budget for production, drilling and development of offshore Al-Amal Field in the Gulf of Suez that has been effective since the beginning of the fiscal year of 2010-2011. Moreover, both partners sealed an agreement with the Ministry of Petroleum that approved this financial budget; therefore, the main concern will be solely revolving around Al-Amal development plan. AMPPTCO will not be part of any bid rounds, at least for the time being,

What are the company’s producing wells?
Presently, there are two wells, Amal A and Amal B at the offshore Al-Amal Field. However, there will be another exploratory well to be drilled during the fiscal year of 2011-2012 at the same concession area, with $20 million investment.

How different is your production rate compared to last year’s?
As I mentioned earlier, last year’s gas production stood at 12 million cubic, while this year we are planning to increase this rate to 70 million cubic feet per day. As for the crude oil production, a slight increase is expected; going from 7000 to 8000 barrels of crude oil per day.

Will AMAPETCO release any tenders?
As a matter of fact, there will be a tender to rent a new rig to drill two development well in Al-Amal field, as part of the company’s development plan for the fiscal year of 2010-2011.

Are there any operation changes requested by your foreign partners?
Nothing has changed between the Ministry and the company’s foreign partners in terms of business operations. Both parties are satisfied by the positive outcomes and the way business is handled.

What are the obstacles hindering your work progress?
Objectively, there is not any kind of obstacles obstructing our workflow. On the contrary, there is a harmony between the Ministry and the foreign partners working in Egyptian companies.

How does the Ministry of Petroleum support the Egyptian companies?
The Ministry of Petroleum attributes special attention to producing companies, whether national, international or joint venture, as it aims at boosting the country’s production and reserves rates. That is the reason why the Ministry encourages all means of cooperation between companies to put more wells on production lines as quick as possible, for example, now I can use another company’s production facilities to put my own wells on production lines.

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