On the occasion of National Petroleum Day, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi gave a speech during which he praised the latest developments in the sector and outlined its working strategy for the coming period.

Badawi emphasized that oil and gas exploration and production activities have gained significant momentum in recent months, driven by the incentive packages offered by the petroleum sector to attract investment. He highlighted the extensive collaborative efforts between the petroleum sector and both international and Egyptian investment partners to capitalize on promising opportunities and intensify activities aimed at boosting production rates.

The minister stated that international companies have recently intensified their activities within their concession areas, including drilling new wells in the West Mediterranean. He also expressed gratitude to Egyptian investors for mobilizing national capital to support oil and gas exploration and production efforts.

Badawi also mentioned and presented the primary pillars of the sector’s working strategy. He elaborated that providing citizens with their needs for petroleum products and gas is at the forefront of these pillars and represents the priority of the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources (MoPMR).

He emphasized the importance of maximizing the utilization of the refining and petrochemical sector’s infrastructure by operating it at full capacity. Badawi also highlighted the significant focus on developing Egypt’s mineral resources, aiming to increase their contribution to the national GDP to 5-6%.

The minister further elaborated on the fourth strategic pillar, which involves optimizing the energy mix to reduce emissions. This approach creates opportunities to channel the increased production of natural gas into value-added industries.

Meanwhile, he pointed to the fifth pillar concerned with health, safety, and environment (HSE) as well as human capacities, thanking all current and former employees for their efforts in the achievements and establishment of projects and infrastructure for the sector over the decades.

Badawi discussed the sixth pillar which included integrated work whether with government agencies and ministries, in addition to cooperation with the House of Representatives and the Senate to provide an attractive legislative environment for investments, or integration and collaboration with international and Egyptian partners.

At the end of his speech, Badawi expressed his deep respect and appreciation for the efforts made by the people of this sector in various fields of production and their success over the past years.

For his part, Abbas Saber, Head of the General Trade Union of Petroleum Workers (GTUPW), delivered a speech in which he stressed the importance of the worker’s role in the current efforts of the petroleum sector to achieve a better start in attracting investments and increasing production of petroleum resources to support the national economy.

In addition, Badawi honored the former Ministers of Petroleum, including Sameh Fahmy, Abdullah Ghorab, Osama Kamal, and Tarek El Molla. He also awarded the sector’s shield to Mohamed Shimi, Minister of the Public Business Sector; Mohamed Gebran, Minister of Labor; Lieutenant General Ahmed Khaled Saeed, Governor of Alexandria; Hani Dahi, former Minister of Transportation; and Mohamed Saafan, former Minister of Labor other officials. He also honored Gamal Fathy, Advisor to the Minister for Occupational Safety and Health, and other distinguished employees.