Royal Dutch Shell and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) are in discussions over the price of shale gas that will be produced in the Al-Abyad area for the first time in Egypt, reported Daily News Egypt. A pricing problem has occurred due to the high expenses of the project, as it is very different from the traditional excavation process.

Sources say that Royal Dutch Shell, in cooperation with US company Apache, are excavating for shale gas in the Al-Abyad area. Excavations are occurring in the upper layers of the ground due to its good size, with the non-traditional ways for production rendered unnecessary. Studies are currently under preparation to assess these layers and their gas reserves, for the foreign partner to determine the required budget for drilling wells and placing them on production.