Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, met with Greg McDaniel, Senior Vice President of International Assets and General Manager of Apache Egypt, to discuss ways to enhance cooperation and follow up on the progress of operations at the company’s production sites, focusing on improving operational efficiency and developing work mechanisms in concession areas.

​During the meeting, Badawi praised the efforts he observed during his recent visit to the Western Desert sites, emphasizing the significance of supporting employees as the fundamental pillar for sustaining production operations around the clock. He also commended the efficiency and professionalism of the work teams, particularly their strict commitment to health, safety, and environment (HSE) standards.

Badawi inspected on April 19 the production operations at the Salam field located in the Western Desert, operated by Khalda Petroleum Company, one of Egypt’s leading crude oil producers and a subsidiary of US Apache, with Moataz Atef, Country Chairman and Managing Director of Khalda, explaining plans for increasing production ahead of the summer season.

​They also reviewed several new contractual models offered by the petroleum sector as part of an investment incentive package to maximize operational efficiency, encourage partners, reduce costs, and support plans to increase production.

​For his part, McDaniel praised the Egyptian petroleum sector’s ability to efficiently handle challenges and provide an attractive business environment, noting the importance of continuous coordination with foreign partners and overcoming any obstacles in order to support the achievement of mutual production goals.

Apache, which has been present in Egypt since the mid-1990s, is a leading producer in the Western Desert through its joint venture (JV) with EGPC and Khalda Petroleum.

On March 24, Apache, in collaboration with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), made a new natural gas discovery in the Western Desert, following the drilling of the SKAL-1X exploratory well in the South Kalabsha area. Preliminary test results from the well show daily production rates of approximately 26 million cubic feet (mmcf) of natural gas and 2,700 barrels of condensates.