Arab Finance: Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi met with Diego Portoghese, Head of North Africa and Levant at Eni, and Francesco Gasparri, Eni’s General Manager in Egypt, to review the company’s exploration and production activities in Egypt and discuss avenues to strengthen cooperation, as per a statement.

Badawi highlighted progress observed during his recent visit to the Meleiha field in the Western Desert and ongoing work in the Abu Madi concession, noting advancements in Eni’s exploration and production operations.

The minister also emphasized the need to maintain an accelerated pace of work, address operational challenges promptly, and strengthen coordination among all stakeholders.

For his part, Portoghese said exploration and drilling activities continue to advance, with plans to intensify operations in the coming period supported by available technical capabilities and skilled personnel.

He noted that this momentum is expected to help meet rising domestic demand, particularly during the summer months.

Additionally, the discussions covered progress on the project to transport gas from the Cronos field in Cyprus to Egypt by linking it to existing Egyptian infrastructure. The role of the investor consortium, comprising Eni and TotalEnergies, was reviewed as part of efforts to advance implementation and support regional energy integration.

Both sides also explored opportunities for new investments in Egypt’s oil and gas sector, including expanding exploration and production, accelerating development of existing discoveries, and launching initiatives to increase output and maximize resource utilization.

It is worth noting that Eni announced a significant gas and condensate discovery in Egypt earlier this month after successfully drilling the Denise W-1 exploration well in the Temsah Concession, located offshore in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The Italian energy giant also signed a memorandum of intent with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) to renew the commitment to the North Port Said concession.

Since 1954, Eni has acquired a diversified portfolio in Egypt spanning exploration, development, and production, with oil and gas production of 242 kilobarrels of oil equivalent equity in 2025.