Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Tarek El Molla, visited the liquefied natural gas (LNG) recipient platform and related facilities owned by Arab Petroleum Pipelines Company (SUMED) to follow up on the experimental work in the platform and facilities located in Ain Sokhna Port, in the Red Sea, Egypt Oil&Gas reported.

SUMED’s project has initial investments estimated at $415m. The project includes establishing a 2.5km platform with 19-meter depth. The project further includes LNG carriers, product carriers, and three anchors to receive floating storage regasification unit (FSRU), as Egypt already received a FSRU in June 2016, SUMED’s Head, Mohamed Abdel Hafez, stated.

Hafez further explained that the project also has a number of warehoused with total capacity 295,000 cubic meters to store mazut and diesel, along with other facilities. The project also includes pumping butane to the national grid, which will be running by 2019.

SUMED’s project is one of the important projects executed in the Egyptian energy field, which aim to secure local demands of petroleum products and natural gas, stated El Molla. The project will contribute in turning Egypt into an energy regional hub.

The ministry has supported development projects of gas fields, refineries and infrastructure to go side by side with the country’s economic reform and the Gas Law and Investment Law, El Molla added.

The minister was accompanied in his visit with the first Undersecretary of the Ministry for Petroleum Affairs, the Executive Manager of the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), the Head of the Egyptian Natural gas Holding Company (EGAS),  the Deputies of EGPC and EGAS for External Trade, Transportation, Distribution, and Operations, as well as the Heads of Petrojet, GASCO, Petroleum Marine Services (PMS), Suez Security Director, and Parliament’s Suez members