With its sights set on higher domestic gas production, Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources is pushing to accelerate field development in the Eastern Mediterranean waters, as part of its broader efforts to enable upstream growth and achieve its exploration and production plans through 2030.
While visiting the Pharaonic Petroleum Company (PhPC) production site in Port Said Governorate, Karim Badawi, Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, highlighted the importance of studying technical alternatives to accelerate the connection of the Harmattan gas field to existing processing infrastructure. This field is situated around 2.5 kilometers north of Ras El-Barr in Damietta, within the El Burg Offshore concession area.
Badawi used the visit to follow up on drilling and exploration programs, field development activities in the company’s Mediterranean concessions, and ongoing new projects, particularly the Harmattan gas field. This is aligned with the country’s plan to drill more than 100 exploratory oil and gas wells in 2026 in cooperation with investment partners.
Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources directed the firm to focus on expediting work to connect the offshore field to the production facilities, while evaluating all solutions and alternatives that could shorten the project’s implementation timeline.
The move would speed up the start-up of the field, enabling the utilization of its reserves and production potential to support natural gas supplies to the domestic market. Harmattan is forecast to yield about 200 million cubic feet of natural gas per day and 4,400 barrels of condensate.
Hossam Zaki, Chairman of PhPC, briefed Badawi on the company’s programs and plans to increase natural gas and condensate production, in line with the country’s strategy to boost production rates and maximize the utilization of existing infrastructure.
The visit came shortly after Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources held a meeting with the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and managers of international and Egyptian oil companies, representing investment partners in oil and gas exploration and production activities in the country.
The meeting was held at GASCO’s headquarters in the presence of senior officials of the ministry, the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), and South Valley Egyptian Petroleum Holding Company (Ganope).
Current performance indicators were reviewed for upstream activities, as well as work plans, field development programs, and production enhancement plans for the upcoming five years, while discussing new investment opportunities and targeted work programs through 2030.
Badawi asserted that the regular settlement of partners’ outstanding dues, together with the incentives and corrective measures implemented, helped restore investor confidence and paved the way for increased drilling activities and field development, supporting efforts to boost domestic production and reduce the import bill.
The Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources announced preparations to launch a new seismic survey in the Western Desert, near the Libyan border, to acquire up-to-date geological and geophysical data to support and encourage investment in oil and gas exploration in this frontier area, which has not previously witnessed petroleum activities.
According to Badawi, the area covers approximately 110,000 square kilometers, representing around 11% of the country’s total area, adding that a tender was launched and the implementation of the project was awarded to Saudi Arabia’s Ardiseis, a company specialized in seismic survey services.
Recently, Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources announced the launch of the 2026 International Bid Round for crude oil and gas exploration, which includes 14 new blocks offered to international and Egyptian companies to attract more investment that will support local production and achieve the targets of the five-year plan to increase its rates.
The bid round, for which submissions opened on August 11, includes eight blocks affiliated to EGAS in the Mediterranean Sea, the Nile Delta, and North Sinai, with the deadline for submissions set for December 14, 2026, in addition to six blocks to EGPC in the Gulf of Suez, Sinai, and the Western Desert, with the deadline for submissions set for November 11, 2026.
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