Egypt is preparing a seismic survey spanning about 110,000 km² in the western Western Desert near the Libyan border, aimed at building a new geological and geophysical database and attracting oil and gas investment in this largely unexplored area,  Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, announced.

The survey will cover an area equivalent to around 11% of Egypt’s total territory and will target a region that has not previously witnessed petroleum activities, according to Badawi during a meeting with the heads and senior executives of international and Egyptian oil and gas companies.  The meeting aimed at reviewing the current performance of exploration and production activities, field development plans, production targets for the coming five years, and new investment opportunities through 2030, according to a statement by the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources (MoPMR),

MoPMR has awarded the seismic survey contract to Saudi Arabia-based Ardiseis, a company specializing in seismic acquisition services, following a competitive tender, Badawi said.

The minister noted that the new survey is part of Egypt’s broader efforts to expand the exploration frontier and provide investors with updated subsurface data that can support the evaluation and development of new oil and gas prospects.

In July 2026, Badawi said the MoPMR was implementing nine seismic surveys to identify new exploration areas, alongside projects in the Eastern Mediterranean and West Assiut, building on commitments for over $17 billion in foreign investments over five years.

During the meeting, Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) CEO Salah Abdel Kerim highlighted that exploration activity has delivered positive results over the past two fiscal years, with 149 exploration wells drilled, resulting in 112 new discoveries, including 88 crude oil discoveries and 24 natural gas discoveries. Among the notable finds was the Denis offshore gas discovery in Port Said.

He added that, during fiscal years (FY) 2024/25 and FY 2025/26, Egypt signed 19 exploration and production agreements, involving minimum investments of $823.1 million, signature bonuses of $93.5 million, and commitments to drill 134 wells. Another 13 agreements are currently being prepared for signing, with investments exceeding $1 billion and commitments to drill 120 wells, Abdel Kerim said.

For his part, Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) Executive Managing Director Sayed Selim noted that the number of wells drilled increased from just two wells in FY 2020/21 to 15 wells in FY 2025/26, while discoveries rose from one to 10 over the same period. During FY 2025/26, EGAS awarded 11 new exploration areas and signed five agreements, supporting the expansion of exploration activities in the Mediterranean Sea and Nile Delta, he said.

Additionally, Samir Raslan, Chairman of the South Valley Egyptian Petroleum Holding Company (Ganope) said the company’s production rose to around 33,000 barrels per day (b/d) in FY 2025/26, supported by drilling 33 development and 11 exploration wells.

Ganope is conducting a 100,000-sq.-km seismic survey south of the Western Desert, with results expected by year-end after data processing to support new oil and gas exploration opportunities and strengthen Egypt’s geological database.

Under its five-year plan, Ganope aims to drill 36 exploration wells with $177 million in investments, potentially increasing the number to 60 wells following the award of 20 new exploration areas. The company also plans to offer 17 investment opportunities in promising areas. Ganope targets production of 44,000 b/d in FY 2026/27 and 65,000 b/d by FY 2030/31, Raslan emphasized.