Damietta expands Ro-Ro service to route EU cargo to the Gulf

Damietta Port has launched a new service to handle refrigerated and dry cargo arriving from Europe on the Trieste-Damietta Ro-Ro line before forwarding shipments to Gulf markets through Safaga under an indirect transit model, according to a document seen by EnterpriseAM.

What changed? The service comes after transit cargo bound for Gulf countries was exempted from prior ACI registration, easing procedures at a time when regional shipping disruption is pushing cargo owners to look for faster and more predictable routing options. Damietta has already received the first indirect transit units on the Gallipoli Seaways.

Why it matters: This gives Egypt another live corridor to pitch to shippers moving perishables and other time-sensitive cargo between Europe and the Gulf. It also shows how Damietta’s digital systems, customs coordination, and the Damietta-Trieste Ro-Ro link are being used for more than bilateral trade with Europe — they are now being positioned as transit infrastructure for cargo flows trying to bypass friction elsewhere in the region.

More gas cooperation with Cyprus in the pipeline

Could we see more Cypriot gas coming our way? Egypt and Cyprus inked a framework agreement on the first day of the Egypt Energy Show, which a Cypriot spokesperson tells Reuters will set the stage for more agreements “for the exploitation of Cyprus’ reserves.” Another source told the newswire that the agreement allows for discussions over the sale of gas from the Cronos and Aphrodite fields to Egypt.

We should start receiving Cypriot gas by the end of the decade, under an agreement inked last year between the two nations. Cyprus will send gas from its Cronos and Aphrodite fields for us to liquefy and re-export. Gas from Cronos is expected to start flowing by 2028, and gas from Aphrodite will start heading our way by 2030, as we previously reported.

Gas from Aphrodite could come our way sooner than expected after the Oil Ministry and Chevron — one of the field’s developers — inked a host government agreement to expedite the development of the field.

BP to pump some USD 1.5 bn in Egypt in the upcoming fiscal year

Energy giant BP plans to invest USD 1.5 bn on exploration and gas field development projects in Egypt over the next fiscal year, according to a statement from the Oil Ministry. The move “supports the plan to gradually increase domestic output and ease pressures from the rising cost of gas imports,” Oil Minister Karim Badawi said, amid what could become the world’s most severe energy crisis.

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