The Egypt Upstream Gateway (EUG) has provided an overview of the West Zohr Offshore block, one of the 14 blocks included in the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources (MoPMR)’s 2026 international bid round, launched on August 11.

According to EUG’s LinkedIn page, the block covers an area of 1,952 square kilometers (km²) in the northeastern corner of the North East Mediterranean Sea region. It is located within the Levantine Basin, where three wells have previously been drilled to depths ranging from 1,175 to 1,550 meters (m).

The area has been covered by 2D and 3D seismic surveys spanning 1,846 km and 1,716 km², respectively.

The round bid closing date for the block is December 14, 2026.

                                                                    Photo Source: EUG’s LinkedIn Account.

The ministry’s 2026 bid round contains 14 oil and gas exploration blocks comprising eight in the Mediterranean Sea, Nile Delta, and North Sinai regions offered by the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) as well as six blocks in the Gulf of Suez, Sinai, and Western Desert regions offered by the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).

EGAS is targeting an additional 250 million cubic feet per day (mmcf/d) from the Zohr and West Mina fields before the end of 2026, according to the Ministry’s release following the company’s general assembly meeting for fiscal year (FY) 2025/2026.

Zohr is the largest gas discovery in Egypt and the Mediterranean region. Ownership is divided among Eni (50%), Russia’s Rosneft (30%), British Petroleum (BP) (10%), and UAE-based Mubadala Energy (10%).The field is operated by Petrobel, a joint venture between Eni and EGPC.