Adnoc eyes USD 1 bn investment to boost retail play in Egypt

Adnoc Distribution is looking to double down on its Egypt play, weighing up a much larger retail buildout. It’s currently studying a roughly USD 1 bn investment to add roughly 400 service stations to its 245 currently in Egypt, Asharq Business reports, citing an unnamed government official. Any move would likely be split across two phases of around 200 stations each, with automotive and engine lubricants also part of the plan.

IN CONTEXT- Any such investment would come amid a wider push for its downstream asset portfolio. Adnoc Distribution signed an agreement in July worth an implied USD 1 bn to take over Shell South Africa's downstream business — a transaction still awaiting close in 2027 — marking its expansion into a fourth retail market and increasing its global network by 55% to nearly 1.6k service stations. Adnoc’s expansion in Egypt would likely make it the largest private fuel retail presence in the country.

Possible partnerships? Adnoc is considering a partnership with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) for the move, while also weighing other strategies such as building sites independently for the first time or operating through a leasing model.

There’s also a USD 50 mn aviation angle: Adnoc’s distribution arm is also preparing to begin aircraft refueling at Sphinx Airport in October and at Hurghada by year-end as part of a USD 50 mn push under an agreement with the EGPC over infrastructure that's state-owned at both sites, sources said.

Sound familiar? The company was discussing an entry into aircraft refueling with the Oil Ministry in early 2024, and a year later was looking to expand beyond Cairo and Marsa Alam airports, including into Alamein, Adnoc Distribution CEO Bader Al Lamki previously told EnterpriseAM.

Why it matters: Egypt already accounts for around 36% of Adnoc Distribution's aviation-fuel sales volumes group-wide, 129 mn liters of 357 mn liters in 1H 2026, according to the company's financial release (pdf), though that 3.9% y-o-y growth trailed the group's 53.9% increase over the same period. The same unnamed official told Asharq Business that aviation already generates more than 60% of Adnoc Distribution's Egypt-based EBITDA.

This time, Adnoc is building instead of buying: It assembled most of its current footprint through its 2023 acquisition of a 50% stake in TotalEnergies Marketing Egypt. Adnoc began local motor-oil manufacturing in late 2024, then laid out plans with TotalEnergies in May 2025 for marine motor-oil production capacity of around 90k tons a year.