BP, QatarEnergy, and Eni get their hands on new exploration block off Egypt

A consortium – comprising Qatar’s QatarEnergy, the UK’s BP, and Italy’s Eni – has been awarded a new exploration block offshore Egypt as part of the 2022 EGAS International Bid Round. 

According to Qatar’s state-owned energy giant, Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources announced the results of the competitive bid process, awarding exploration and production rights for block EGY-MED-E8 (East Port Said) to a consortium comprising of Eni (operator, 34%), QatarEnergy (33%), and BP (33%).

Located offshore Egypt’s northeastern Mediterranean coast, the East Port Said block lies in water depths up to 800 meters and covers an area of approximately 2,600 square kilometers.

Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs, President and CEO of QatarEnergy, commented: “We are delighted to be awarded the East Port Said block, which further expands our presence in the Arab Republic of Egypt. We look forward to collaborating with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources, EGAS, and our partners Eni and BP to progress our exploration endeavors.”

QatarEnergy highlights that this award solidifies its position in Egypt’s upstream sector with four offshore exploration blocks, including interests in Red Sea Block 3 and Block 4 and the North Marakia block in the Mediterranean Sea.

As Qatar intends to boost its LNG production, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Amir of the State of Qatar, laid the foundation stone of the North Field expansion project on Tuesday, October 3, 2023. This will raise the Persian Gulf state’s LNG production capacity from the current 77 million tons per annum (mtpa) to 126 mtpa by 2026.

QatarEnergy has been working on expanding its portfolio. To this end, Qatar’s giant entered into an agreement with Shell to buy a partial interest in a block located off the coast of Mauritania. The company also entered into a farm-in agreement for two exploration licenses offshore Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada with ExxonMobil.

In addition, Qatar’s oil and gas player wrapped up the acquisition of a partial interest in two offshore blocks located in Lebanese waters in January 2023 and entered into production sharing contracts (PSCs) for two blocks offshore Suriname in May 2023, following previous successful bids for these blocks.