Egypt awards Eni five exploration licences

Eni announced on Monday it has been awarded five new exploration licences by the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum, located in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, Western Desert, and Gulf of Suez

The licences, four of which as operator, are in the Egyptian offshore and onshore, and follow the successful participation to the 2021 competitive “Egypt International Bid Round for Petroleum Exploration and Exploitation”. This bid was previously announced by the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation and the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company through the Egypt Exploration and Production Gateway.

“The licences are located in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea (Block “EGY-MED-E5” in partnership with BP 50 percent-50 percent and Block “EGY-MED-E6” IEOC 100 percent), in the Gulf of Suez (Block “EGY-GOS-13” IEOC 100 percent) and in the Western Desert (Blocks “Egy-WD- 7” in partnership with APEX 50 percent -50 percent and “EGY-WD-9” IEOC 100 percent) with a total acreage of about 8,410 sqkm.” Eni said in a statement.

Eni added that the licences “are placed within prolific basins with proved petroleum systems able to generate liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons and can also rely on nearby existing producing and processing facilities and on a demanding market that will allow a quick valorization of the potential exploration discoveries.”

“The bid results are aligned with Eni’s strategy to keep exploring and producing gas to sustain the Egyptian domestic market and contribute to LNG export, thanks to the recent restart of the Damietta LNG plant.”