At the General Assembly meeting, Yassen Mohamed, Chairman of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), highlighted the company’s significant achievements in the natural gas industry during the 2023/24 fiscal year. The presentation showcased notable progress across various areas of the sector.

The meeting, attended by Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi, aimed to approve EGAS’s operational results for the fiscal year.

Mohamed announced that EGAS signed 11 new agreements with international companies for natural gas exploration and production, with a minimum investment of $925 million and a signature bonus of $30 million.

Additionally, five new concession areas in the Mediterranean and Nile Delta were awarded for exploration and production, representing a total minimum investment of $400 million.

Mohamed also highlighted the recently announced natural gas exploration and production bid round for 2024, launched through the Egypt Upstream Gateway (EUG). He noted that EGAS has completed five seismic programs covering an area of 24,000 square kilometers to enhance exploration activities.

He further explained that five new discoveries were made, with reserves totaling 1.3 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 30 million barrels of oil and condensates. Additionally, four new wells are currently under development for natural gas exploration, with investments amounting to $640 million.

In terms of natural gas production, Mohamed reported that 19 wells have been brought online, with investments totaling $613 million. He added that natural gas was supplied to various sectors of the local market, with total annual consumption reaching 2.2 trillion cubic feet, averaging 6 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d).

The EGAS chairman noted that the electricity sector was the largest consumer of natural gas, accounting for approximately 58% of Egypt’s total gas consumption. He also mentioned that approvals were granted to supply natural gas to 290 plants, with imported gas quantities reaching around 337 billion cubic feet (bcf) during the year to meet local market demand.

Additionally, natural gas was connected to 675,000 housing units during the year, bringing the total number of households benefiting from gas nationwide to around 15 million.

Natural gas was also supplied to approximately 15,000 commercial establishments and 97 industrial plants. Around 50,000 vehicles were converted to run on natural gas, 75 new gas filling stations were built, and 24 centers were established to convert cars to dual-fuel operation. Additionally, projects were undertaken to enhance and expand the national natural gas pipeline network, with an investment exceeding EGP 660 million.

In the area of health, safety, and environment (HSE), the company achieved 19 million safe working hours without any lost time incidents. During the General Assembly, the company’s deputies and assistants to the chairman presented progress in various domains, including production, field development, exploration, operations, networks, planning, gas connection projects, occupational safety and health, environmental protection, administrative affairs, human resources, information technology, digital transformation, and financial affairs.

Minister Karim Badawi praised EGAS for its role in securing natural gas for the local market and contributing to the growth of the country’s natural gas resources.

Badawi affirmed that work is underway to overcome obstacles, address challenges, and enhance the attractiveness of investment opportunities to continue transforming the exploration of gas and petroleum into a compelling investment destination in the face of fierce competition to attract investment in this field. He emphasized that attracting investors and encouraging them to increase investments in this sector in Egypt is a top priority for the Ministry, given the promising potential in the region, which already attracts major global companies to invest. He also pointed to the importance of ongoing dialogue with foreign partners to provide all the necessary incentives and support to encourage them to expand their operations in Egypt and inject more investments with the aim of achieving discoveries and increasing production.