Egypt paid a total of $1 billion over three years for renting Saipem 10000 drilling rig, which is working in the Zohr natural gas field, sources in the oil and gas sector told Al Borsa.

Eni spent around $1 million per day for renting the driller, the sources noted.

Drilling one well in the Zohr field, in the Mediterranean deep water, requires around two months, the source said, adding that the company is currently preparing to drill the tenth well.

Eni aims to start drilling the tenth well in Zohr with a $300 million cost, and with production capacity reaching 200 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscf/d) in January 2019.

The sources pointed out the gradual increase in the ninth well’s production to be around 250 mmscf/d, for the field’s total output to reach 2.25 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d).