Egypt will spend USD 9 bn over the next four years to upgrade six oil refineries, Oil Minister Tarek El Molla has said, according to Reuters. The project aims to increase the country’s production to 41 mn tonnes per year, up from 25 mn tonnes currently. We had noted last year that Assiut Oil Refining Company (ASORC) signed a USD 100 mn loan agreement with the China Development Bank (CBD) to help fund refinery upgrades as part of a strategy to upgrade refineries nationwide. The minister did not name the refineries or make clear whether the figure includes the USD 4.3 bn Egyptian Refining Company, which government officials have in the past positioned as a refinery upgrade project for the adjacent Cairo Oil Refining Company, which is providing feedstock for ERC.

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