First gas flame seen in Mediterranean’s Zohr field

CAIRO – 24 July 2017: Media reports circulated photos of a gas flame was reportedly seen for the first time coming from the Zohr gas field in the Mediterranean.

Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El Molla said in previous remarks that the development of the Zohr field in the Shorouk concession area is proceeding well according to the plan.

He added that the project’s plan aims to produce about one billion cubic feet of gas per day in the first stage by the end of 2017, while it will reach about 2.7 billion cubic feet per day by the end of 2019.

El Molla said that the total investments in the Zohr field will reach $8 billion by the end of fiscal year (FY) 2017/2018.

Egypt's natural gas production rose to about 5.1 billion cubic feet per day in 2017 from 4.4 billion cubic feet in 2016 with the start of production from the first phase of BP's North Alexandria project.

Egypt has been seeking to speed up gas production from recently discovered fields, with an eye to halting imports by 2019. Once an energy exporter, it has become an importer after domestic output failed to keep pace with rising demand.

The three large projects, which include the Zohr Mediterranean gas field discovered by Italy's Eni last year, are expected to collectively bring 4.6 bln cubic feet of gas per day online by the start of 2019.

Eni began production at Nooros, its Nile Delta offshore field, in September 2015.