Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly met with Tarek El Molla, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, at the government headquarters in New Alamein City.

During the meeting, El Molla reviewed the development and exploration activities for natural gas, where he explained that a plan is being implemented to drill 45 natural gas wells in the Mediterranean Sea and the Delta with investments of about $1.9 billion.

The plan included drilling 10 wells that were completed during the fiscal year ending 2022/23, which resulted in significant discoveries, the most important of which was the discovery of Nargis in the Mediterranean with reserves of about 2.5 trillion cubic feet of gas.

The minister added that the well drilling plan includes, during the fiscal years 2023/2024 and 2024/2025, the drilling of 35 new wells for natural gas, with investments of more than $1.5 billion, with the aim of increasing production and reserves.

El Molla indicated that the results of the international bidding to search for natural gas in 12 onshore and offshore areas in the Mediterranean and the Delta are being evaluated, following its closure at the end of last July.

The minister stated that the ministry’s strategy is working to accelerate the development of discoveries and put them on the production map as soon as possible. He further highlighted the need to rationalize consumption, improve energy efficiency and accelerate the transition to new and renewable energy.

El Molla reviewed the progress of Zohr gas field development plans, which included drilling and completing 20 wells. This in addition to five additional wells,  starting in 2024, to support production rates from the field, which currently amount to about 2.2 billion cubic feet of gas per day.