Egypt, Halliburton agree to prepare 50-well drilling programme

Egypt has signed an agreement with Halliburton on Thursday to prepare a programme to drill 50 oil wells over 18 months using horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing, as the country targets unlocking unconventional resources and boosting domestic production.

The agreement was signed by the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) and the US oilfield services company. It covers studies and preparations for the programme in areas operated by the EGPC.

Petroleum Minister Karim Badawi, who witnessed the signing, said wider adoption of advanced technologies would enable Egypt to tap oil and gas formations that could not be economically developed using conventional methods.

The agreement forms part of the ministry’s efforts to expand the use of advanced and unconventional technologies in exploration and production, particularly in existing production areas.

Badawi said the agreement followed recent discussions with Halliburton executives on the sidelines of the ADIPEC Exhibition & Conference in Abu Dhabi and would translate them into practical cooperation. He added that EGPC’s workforce expertise would be essential to applying the technologies and increasing output.

The ministry cited EGPC’s recent hydraulic-fracturing work at the NES-8 Well in the Western Desert as an example of the technology’s application. The well produced nearly 3 million cubic feet of gas per day from the Abu Roash F formation, which had not been commercially exploitable using conventional methods.

Halliburton President and Chief Executive Jeffrey Miller said the company was committed to providing its expertise and advanced technologies to support the programme.

EGPC Chairman Salah El-Din Abdel Kareem and Halliburton Regional Manager for MENA and Eurasia Ahmed Helmy signed the agreement, with Miller participating via video conference.