KUWAIT: Egypt'sMinister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tariq Al-Mulla said Monday thatKuwaiti companies investing in the oil sector in his country are eager toexpand in light of the good returns and facilities received by the Egyptiangovernment. Mulla noted during a press conference held in Kuwait on theoccasion of his visit to the country, that Kuwaiti investors are currentlywelcoming investment in Egypt due to existing facilities, stable conditions andexpected large returns, indicating that these companies have a desire to expandin Egypt. The minister pointed out that during his current visit; he met anumber of officials of these companies, including Kuwait Foreign PetroleumExploration Company (KUFPEC) and Kuwait Energy.
Mulla affirmedthat he also met with a number of Kuwaiti investors recently in Egypt, wherethey revived the idea of establishing a Kuwaiti refinery in the Suez Canalarea. He noted that Egypt currently imports about 2 million barrels of oil fromKuwait in addition to some petroleum products, including diesel. He pointed outthat his country imports from several other countries and that Egypt exportssome kinds of oil that do not suit Egyptian refineries.
On the currentproduction of oil from Egypt, he said that the current production is about 660thousand barrels per day and the target is to reach 670 thousand barrels perday, pointing out that what Egypt consumes oil exceeds production by about 250thousand barrels per day. The fluctuation of oil prices makes investmentreduces the number of investors, pointing out that the gas has seen a boomduring the last period because it is not directly related to the fluctuation ofoil prices, as the global companies are interested in investing in theexploration and production of gas more than oil, he added. He noted that Egyptreached the self-sufficiency of natural gas in September 2018 whether in theconsumption of electricity or other industries or sectors,adding that Egypt is working in the second phase of the development of thefield back to reach the production of 3 billion cubic feet per day by nextJuly.
On theexploration carried out by Egypt during the coming period, he said that theMinistry of Petroleum is working on three axes, the first in the MediterraneanSea and the second with the implementation of international bidding in theEastern and Western Desert, Gulf of Suez and Sinai, while the third axis is thefirst bid for the Red Sea. - KUNA