Shell Egypt has announced a new discovery after successfully completing the drilling of the first well in its three-well exploration campaign, Mina West, located in the North East El-Amriya block, in the Mediterranean Sea.

The company said in a statement that drilling activities took place at a water depth of around 250 meters below sea level in the offshore Nile Delta and the primary data confirmed the presence of gas-bearing reservoir.

It explained that acquired data requires more evaluation to determine the size and recoverable potential of the discovery.

On this occasion, Khaled Kacem, Vice President and Country Chair of Shell Egypt, said: “This discovery is an important step forward for Shell Egypt bolstering our growth aspirations and ongoing commitment as a key partner in Egypt’s energy landscape. Successful delivery of our current exploration campaign is part of Shell Egypt’s growth strategy. Shell, together with its partners, will continue to work towards safely and efficiently reaching the development phase of the block.”

It should be noted that Shell signed a Farm Out Agreement (FOA) with Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) last September, under which KUFPEC acquired a 40% stake in North East El-Amriya block, with Shell holding the remaining 60% stake, of the partner’s share with the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS).