Red Sea area to witness intensive oil activities

CAIRO – 22 September 2018: Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum Tarek el-Molla said that the coming period will witness intensive activity in the Red Sea area, in preparation for the first international bidding to explore oil and gas in this region.

This came during the meeting of the General Assembly of Ganoub El-Wadi Petroleum Holding Company to approve the results of its financial results during the fiscal year 2017/2018.

The minister clarified that this step comes after the borders' demarcation agreement with Saudi Arabia and the implementation of the geophysical data processing project in open areas in the Red Sea and southern Egypt.

In June, President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi ratified a border demarcation agreement with Saudi Arabia, after being passed by the Parliament.

According to the agreement, the two Red Sea islands of Tiran and Sanafir will be transferred back to the Saudi kingdom.

The intensification of research and exploration activities in Egypt currently reflect the confidence of investors in the attractive opportunities offered by Egypt through international bidding, which encourages the introduction of new auctions and attract greater investments in various areas of Egypt, including oil in southern Egypt, Molla said.

Chairman of Schlumberger Company for Northern Middle East Maen Razouqi said previously that Egypt is set to organize a global conference in November in Hurghada with the participation of several world companies and specialists, within the framework of marketing for exploration areas in the Red Sea.

The projects aim at carrying out seismic surveys and collecting data to get acquainted with oil and gas opportunities available in these areas.