Egyptian President, Abd ُEl Fattah El Sisi, pointed out the importance of developing the petroleum and mineral resources sector in Egypt, as a cornerstone of the national economy. El Sisi’s statement came during a meeting with Prime Minister, Sherif Ismail, and Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Tarek El Molla. The president urged attracting more foreign investments in the oil and gas field, and minerals, according to Energy Egypt .

Presidential Spokesman, Alaa Youssef, told media that El Sisi highlighted the necessity of accelerating efforts for starting production of natural gas in recently discovered fields and removing all obstacles facing developers and investors in these fields.

Furthermore, El Molla reviewed the ministry’s plans to develop and modernize the sector and the steps taken to improve the performance in the various relevant activities. He also added that 230 oil exploration operations worth $2b are planned to be carried out by 2018.

The plan to achieve natural gas self-sufficiency by 2018 is still intact, the minister stated. Production from north Alexandria gas field has begun while production from Zohr field would begin by the end of 2017, he added.