Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum signed eight exploration and amendment agreements for oil and natural gas exploration worth US $660 million with several foreign firms including BP, Austria’s OMV and Norway’s Statoil.
The ministry said in a statement that the exploration deals signed for the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) and the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) cover an area of 34,000 square kilometers, including offshore fields in the Mediterranean Sea, along with areas in the Nile Delta, North Sinai, Gulf of Suez and Western Desert, with a spending commitment of about US $660 million as well the commitment of drilling 28 wells and signature bonuses of US $33 million

(Reuters)