Another regasification unit coming our way: Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) has inked a 10-year agreement with global maritime energy infrastructure player Höegh Evi for an LNG regasification vessel, Bloomberg reports, citing a statement it has received from the firm. The newswire says the move signals the country’s “long-term dependency on fuel imports.”

Under the agreement, a vessel owned by Höegh Evi — dubbed the Hoegh Gandria — will dock in the Ain Sokhna’s Port of Sumed in 4Q 2026. Before then, the vessel will undergo conversion into a floating storage and regasification unit — it has been serving as an LNG carrier — with a peak daily capacity of 1 bn cubic feet of gas.

A switch-out: The unit will replace the existing Hoegh Galleon — the single operating LNG import terminal in the country — which was delivered by Höegh Evi last year.

Another sign we’re looking at long-term dependence on natgas imports: Egypt and Qatar are mulling over signing long-term contracts for Egypt to secure Qatari natural gas for domestic consumption. This came during a meeting between a delegation led by Oil Minister Karim Badawi and Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad Sherida Al Kaabi. The sit-down also focused on potential integration of energy infrastructure between the two nations to leverage possible synergies in LNG trading, liquefaction, and regasification.

Long-term contracts aren’t what we were expecting: The government has long refrained from relying on long-term natural gas imports, with a government source telling us last year that the government does not want to resort to long-term contracts despite favorable prices at the time amid hopes of new natural gas discoveries that could put Egypt once again to the global export map, along with expanding renewable capacities.

REMEMBER- The government is preparing for a surge in demand over the summer months, which has led the country to target importing 155-160 shipments of LNG this year to close the gap between demand and supply. Egypt reportedly needs around 6.2 bn cubic feet per day (bcf/d), but domestic production currently only contributes 4.4 bcf/d, increasing the need for energy imports.

We have plenty of regasification units coming our way to help us process the shipments. Egypt is in talks to lease a handful of regasification units to cover high energy demand in the summer months. Most recently, Oil Minister Karim Badawi met with CEO of US-based LNG solutions company Excelerate Energy Steven Kobos where they discussed leasing floating storage and regasification units to Egypt. We’re also looking to lease units from Germany, Cyprus, and Turkey.

PICO HAS A NUMBER OF PROJECTS IN THE PIPELINE-

Pico Petroleum is looking to establish production facility projects for three energy companies operating in the Egyptian market this year — the projects aim to yield between 30 mn to 40 mn cubic feet of natural gas per day and 10k to 15k barrels of crude oil per day, a company official told Al Arabiya. The projects will serve Khalda Petroleum, Badr El-Din Petroleum (Bapetco), and Agiba Petroleum — all of which are JVs with foreign and local owners.

Up next: The company is also undertaking work in concession areas in the Western Desert and vying for a number of projects being tendered.

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