Egypt to invest $5.7 billion in exploration to boost oil and gas output by 2030.
Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Karim Badawi, has recently announced an ambitious five-year strategy to expand oil and gas exploration and production across the country. The announcement came during his participation in the opening of the World Energies Summit in London, where he was a keynote speaker.
The plan includes drilling around 480 exploratory wells with total investments exceeding $5.7 billion, marking one of Egypt’s largest oil and gas exploration programs in recent years.
In 2026 alone, Egypt targets drilling 101 new wells, spread across the Western Desert (67), Gulf of Suez (9), Mediterranean Sea (14) and Nile Delta (6), aimed at strengthening domestic energy supply.
Badawi noted that this plan aims to boost production of oil and gas, adding that the incentive measures implemented over the past year helped attract major international companies to Egypt, with total investments reaching about $1.1 billion.
Around 300 wells were drilled and added to the local production map, contributing to the reversal of years of declining gas output by August 2025.
The minister also outlined a roadmap extending to 2030 for investment in exploration and production, pointing out that several agreements have already been signed with major international companies. Eni plans to invest $8 billion, while BP will contribute $5 billion toward new exploration projects. Four additional exploration deals valued at over $340 million were recently signed with Eni, Shell, and Arkeus Energy.
The minister affirmed that Egypt possesses the capabilities and resources to become a regional oil and gas hub, citing its strategic geographic position and advanced infrastructure network, which includes the Idku and Damietta LNG plants, the SUMED and Arab Gas Pipelines, and Africa’s largest refining capacity.
He added that Egypt aims to increase its total petrochemical exports to $4.2 billion by 2030, compared to $2.4 billion in 2025, and invited global companies to expand their investments in Egypt’s stable and encouraging investment climate. He stressed that Egypt remains open to international partnerships across all energy sectors.
Source: Economymiddleeast
