Egypt launches its largest hydrocarbon exploration programme

Egypt has launched a seismic survey to explore for oil and gas in sites that form nearly 10 percent of the country’s area, its petroleum and mineral resources minister has said.

As part of its largest hydrocarbon exploration programme, Egypt will drill 101 oil and gas wells in 2026 following reports of new discoveries by foreign companies operating in the country, including British Petroleum and Italy’s Eni, minister Karim Badawi said.

The drilling in 2026 is part of a $5.7 billion investment plan approved by the government in 2025 for the “spudding” (initial drilling) of a total 480 wells in the next five years.

“The investment plan coincides with the expansion of land and offshore seismic surveys as a key component of our exploration strategy. We have launched a seismic survey project in the southern Western Desert, specifically in the West Assiut and Dakhla region, covering over 100,000 square kilometres, nearly 10 percent of Egypt’s total area,” Badawi told a local energy forum this week.

This strategic project, to be carried out over a period of 12 months, aims to enhance data quality and mitigate investment risks in new areas, he said in his address published by the cabinet on its Facebook page.

“Offshore, we have a seismic survey project in the Eastern Mediterranean covering nearly 95,000 square kilometres using advanced OBN technology.”

Badawi said this project aims to assess gas reserves in that area to support increased production, adding that agreements for the seismic survey have been signed. It will be conducted in three phases, the first of which will be launched in 2026, and it covers an area of around 18,000 square kilometres.

In a report last month, the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources said it had made 75 new oil and gas discoveries during the 2024-2025 fiscal year ending on 30 June 2025, adding that 383 new wells were brought on stream.

“These discoveries and the development projects added around 1.1 billion cubic metres of gas and 200,000 bpd of crude oil to Egypt’s production,” it said.

“We have also managed to save around $6.7 billion in petroleum products import bills following an increase in refining output.”

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