The Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El Molla reviewed several projects including the Automatic Tank Gauging (ATG) project implemented in service stations. This came during a meeting with the supreme committee for petroleum sector projects, according to a press release. 

The ATG system is directly connected with the head office of each affiliated company as well as the ministry and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation’s (EGPC) operation center. The project ensures control of petroleum products’ circulation, in addition to identifying fuel availability in real-time.

El Molla also reviewed the project of installation of electronic billboards in gas stations,  which is also linked to the same operation center,  and will declare the fuel prices to customers and allow a smooth transfer of fuel prices data. The minister continued to discuss the status of the $1.1 billion Suez Oil Processing Company’s (SOPC) coking complex. This included the butane production unit that aims to convert low-value petroleum products to high-value petroleum products and meet the needs of the local market. 

As for the petrochemical industry, El Molla followed up on several projects including; the refining and petrochemical complex project in the economic zone, and the refining and petrochemical complex in Al-Alamein. These projects will contribute to producing specialized petrochemicals and petroleum products to meet a part of the local market’s needs and export the surplus through the Suez Canal and the Al-Hamra Petroleum Port.

Furthermore, the minister followed up on the medium-density fibreboard (MDF) project in Idku, stating that by utilizing 250,000 tons per year of rice straw, 205,000 cubic meters of MDF panels will be produced annually which in turn reduce environmental pollution. The Idku project was valued at EUR 217 million.

As part of turning Egypt into a regional energy hub, El Molla added that the Logistics Services Project (LSP) in Alexandria, which is valued at over $500 million, aims to circulate, store, and transport quantities of petroleum products, natural gas, and petrochemicals.