Egypt plans to sign a joint agreement with Cyprus to construct a direct pipeline from the Cypriot Aphrodite natural gas field to Egypt, the Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Tarek El Molla, announced during an event organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, Egypt Oil & Gas reports.

This comes as Egypt is taking steps to increase cooperation with its regional partners in the field of energy, which was recently crowned by the signing of an strategic energy memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the European Union.

According to the agreement, the two countries will establish an undersea natural gas pipeline between Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone to an Egyptian liquefied natural gas plant, said Cypriot Foreign Minister Nicos Christodoulides, according to Cyprus Mail.