Egypt

Petrobel Achieves 59,000 B/D Oil and 894 MMcf/d Gas Production in FY 2023/2024

Published on : 2024-10-14

Engineer Kareem Badawy, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, emphasized the need to intensify efforts in the current fiscal year 2024-2025 to increase production rates from Petrobel’s fields in Sinai, the Gulf of Suez, the Delta, and the Mediterranean Sea. This goal necessitates a significant drilling campaign for new wells, as well as the application of various technologies to enhance production from existing resources. The Minister praised the substantial efforts made in the previous fiscal year to maintain crude oil production from Petrobel’s fields despite challenges such as natural declines and aging wells, highlighting successful well maintenance and efficiency programs as key achievements for Petrobel and its team.

These remarks were made during Petrobel’s General Assembly meeting held at the Egyptian Petroleum Authority to approve the financial results for the fiscal year 2023/2024, attended by leaders from the petroleum sector and officials from Eni, Petrobel’s Italian partner, as well as BP.

The Minister pointed out the importance of reducing the cost of producing crude oil, which in turn encourages investment and boosts production. This can be achieved through the application of technology, energy conservation, and resource management.

He also stressed the necessity for collaboration between the petroleum sector and Eni to implement global initiatives aimed at reducing methane emissions, which will lead to further advancements in this area in Egypt, particularly at Petrobel’s operational sites.

Engineer Khaled Mowafy, CEO of Petrobel, reported that the company invested approximately $585 million in exploration and production activities for natural gas and crude oil during the last fiscal year, achieving an average production of 894 million cubic feet of gas per day and 59,000 barrels of crude oil, in addition to condensates and butane production.

Mowafy highlighted the significant activities undertaken to maintain crude oil production rates and mitigate the effects of natural declines in fields that have been producing for nearly 70 years. He mentioned that eight new wells were brought online in Sinai and that the company intensified maintenance efforts in the Gulf of Suez and Sinai, executing 354 maintenance operations that improved well productivity using a variety of solutions and techniques to address technical challenges. In the Delta fields, maintenance and stimulation work was conducted on the Abu Madi wells as part of efforts to enhance their capacity and maximize their output.

He further noted that a study is currently underway at the Abu Radis-Sidri field in Sinai to explore all opportunities for increasing production through optimal solutions to improve well performance and expand output. This includes plans to drill wells targeting untapped reserves and intensifying geological studies in the Gulf of Suez and Mediterranean regions, focusing on re-evaluating non-conventional reservoirs such as Eocene reservoirs in the Gulf of Suez and deep oligocene reservoirs in the Mediterranean, as well as assessing promising areas like Radis-Sidri and South Viran.

Regarding safety, Petrobel introduced an integrated health, safety, and environmental management system and implemented campaigns to raise awareness and enhance a safety culture among all personnel. The company is also executing initiatives to ensure pipeline safety and applying risk mitigation strategies based on inspection and examination processes, along with implementing proactive systems for prevention. Additionally, a comprehensive update of the alarm and firefighting systems at the main processing station in Sinai was completed at a cost of $12 million, alongside upgrades to the alarm and firefighting systems at the crude oil gathering station in the Viran area, costing approximately $34 million. The company is also progressing on a full update of fire detection and firefighting systems at all sub-processing stations and offshore platforms.

Petrobel has implemented leading environmental initiatives, including establishing a 14-megawatt solar power station in Sinai, conducting an emissions monitoring campaign to track greenhouse gas emissions from processing and production facilities, and developing corrective measures and maintenance plans to reduce these emissions. Furthermore, they are working on a Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) strategy for industrial wastewater, updating spill response and preparedness equipment for marine oil pollution incidents, and conducting comprehensive biodiversity assessments in Sinai fields. Their efforts were recognized with an award at the Egypt Petroleum Show (EGYPS) 2024 for the best environmental and community projects due to the implementation of a biodiversity management model and ecosystem services in Sinai fields.

Francesco Gaspari, Country Manager of Eni in Egypt, reiterated his company’s commitment to increasing production and ensuring environmental sustainability, expressing gratitude to the Petrobel team for their positive results and progress in several areas, including well maintenance for production retention and safety projects, as well as environmental protection efforts to prevent discharge into the Red Sea. He emphasized the focus on enhancing safety efforts at operational sites.

The General Assembly was attended by Engineer Salah Abdel Karim, CEO of the Egyptian Petroleum Authority, and his deputies, Engineer Youssef Mohamed, Executive Managing Director of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company, and other high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Petroleum.

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