The Western Desert contains Egypt’s largest onshore crude deposits. In recent months, much of the attention given to the Egyptian energy sector has been focused on the giant offshore gas discovery of Zohr. However, while by no means as large as Egypt’s Mediterranean gas find, the continued exploitation of the Western Desert for crude oil is a profitable endeavor for the Egyptian energy sector.
At a time when the country is experiencing a boom in its natural gas production, it is understandable if exploring alternative, more expensive sources of energy is perhaps not a major priority of the Egyptian government.
The oil and gas industry holds some of the biggest hazards in operations. Its workers are often exposed to tough working conditions, in addition to heavy and sensitive materials and machines. Yet, most fatalities in the industry are not caused by heavy equipment or errors in complicated processes. Instead and surprisingly, they are mainly caused by driving mistakes.
Oil and natural gas have been among Egypt’s profitable resources for years. The North African country started by tapping fields on land rather than those in its territorial waters. Now, these onshore wells are starting to reach maturity, and industry leaders have begun to use previously unprecedented technologies to tap Egypt’s riches. Companies are now adopting innovative means to produce tight oil and gas, revive onshore brownfields, and maximize the production rates from these resources.
The petroleum market dynamics have exhibited commodity price turbulence over the past few years. The 2014 oil-prices downturn allowed oil-importing countries to lower their expenses and fiscal deficits, while exporting countries suffered losses. The latest oil price rise has enabled the economies of exporting countries to recover, while hurting the economies of oil importers.
Between the 1940’s and the 1970’s, the average annual price of oil fluctuated within a 6.5% band, but from the 1980’s until the last few years, the variation leapt to almost 11 times that amount. A range of factors have contributed to the most recent volatility, including political crises, financial speculation, and a sharp increase/decrease in demand.
When, in July 2017, Total purchased a controlling stake in phase 11 of Iran’s South Pars natural gas field - projected to produce around 2 billion cubic feet per day (cf/d) - it seemed almost inconceivable that the French oil giant could pull out of the agreement just a year later. Following the conclusion of negotiations, Total’s chief executive, Patrick Pouyanne, lauded the deal as representing a “new page in the history of our partnership with [Iran]”. Fast-forward to July 2018 and it seems that this deal has already been placed in the shredder.
Libya possesses the largest proven oil reserves in Africa and the ninth biggest reserves worldwide with an estimate reserves of 47.1 billion barrels. The country used to be a main oil exporter to Europe for decades as its production reached a peak of 3 million barrels of oil per day (b/d) in the 1970s. Only seven years ago, before the uprising that ended the 42-year rule of Muammar Gaddafi, the north African country was pumping more than 1.6 million b/d. As the country is currently torn between rival governments and tens of militias, it is struggling to maintain a production level of 1 million b/d.
In 2001, Venezuela was the richest country in South America, as stated by the World Economic Forum. The country’s economic position in the region was closely tied to its oil reserves, which - to this day - are the largest known reserves in the world. Under the reign of former President Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan oil industry provided the capital to fuel large-scale socialist reforms. Now, five years after Chavez’s death, the economy and energy sector have collapsed, and the country is in a state of penury.
Egypt is both one of the major oil-producing non-OPEC countries and one of the oldest energy producers in the Middle East. According to Oxford Business Group, the country benefits from low production costs, and a relatively large volume of both onshore and offshore oil and gas fields.
