Dues owed to foreign oil companies operating in Egypt have surged by US$ 400 million by end of last July to US$6.3 billion, according to an official from state-owned Egypt General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).
By end of last June, the dues stood at US$5.9 billion.
The Egyptian official has expressed his optimism saying to Anadolu Agency, the government is currently in talks with a number of international lenders over US$1.5 billion loan, aiming to pay them to the foreign companies by the end of the year 2014.