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Total gas output in Egypt fell by 5% in 2Q 2023 from the previous quarter to 5.88 bn cubic feet per day (cf/d), its lowest since 2Q 2020, Mees reports. Output was down 9% compared with the same period a year before, and nearly 1.2 bn cf/d below the record of 7.07 bn cf/d in 3Q 2021 as output in offshore and onshore fields fell.
Zohr is reportedly producing less: Eni’s giant Zohr field saw record output of 2.76 bn cf/d in 3Q 2021 but output has now been effectively capped at 2.3 bn cf/d on the back of “water infiltration issues,” the industry news site says. The Italian firm’s flagship field saw output drop by 11% y-o-y in 2022 to 2.5 bn cfd, Mees reported earlier. The government recently co nfirmed that the field is currently producing 2.3 bn cf/d.
Remember: Zohr, the Mediterranean’s largest-ever gas find, accounts for some 38% of Egypt’s gas output. The discovery of the field in 2018 allowed the country to pull the plug on gas imports and turned it into a net natural gas exporter.
Nile Delta output at its lowest in eight years: Gas output from onshore Nile Delta fields fell by 5% in 2Q 2023 to 485 mn cf/d, an 18% drop y-o-y and the lowest figure since 3Q 2015. Emirati firm Dana Gas, which derives all of its local output from the area, recently reported (pdf) a 14% y-o-y fall to 22.6k boe/d during the quarter “due to natural field decline and reduced investment activity.” Producers in the Nile Delta and the onshore Western Desert have “slashed gas-related investment,” according to Mees.
Not all is lost: Gas output in offshore Mediterranean projects fell by 5% q-o-q to 4.37 bn cf/d, the lowest quarterly figure since 4Q 2020. However, there could be an uptick soon thanks to fresh drilling campaigns from companies including BP and Shell, Mees says.
REMEMBER- We need more gas: In the immediate term, spiking demand for electricity amid a heatwave has led to shortages of gas that have forced the government to institute nationwide rolling blackouts. In the longer term, Egypt wants more gas to feed to its liquefaction facilities for re-export to Europe as it seeks to become a regional energy hub for the continent.
