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Egypt recorded 83 oil and gas discoveries and attracted about $6.5 billion in investments during the 2024–2025 fiscal year, the country's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources said on Monday.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of EGYPES 2026, Karim Badawi said regional cooperation projects, including plans to link Cypriot offshore gas fields to Egypt’s liquefaction facilities, are reinforcing the country’s role as a regional energy hub.
Egypt is also advancing plans to diversify its energy mix, targeting 42 percent renewable energy by 2030, while maintaining natural gas as a key component of energy security, he noted.
Badawi underlined in his speech that Egypt is gradually reducing its outstanding dues to international partners, which had been a stumbling block to attracting much-needed investments into upstream oil and gas.
Last week, local English language news portal Egypt Oil & Gas had quoted the Minister as saying that these dues have been reduced from about $6.1 billion in June 2024 to $1.3 billion currently, with full settlement targeted by 30 June 2026.
Cyprus gas integration
On the sidelines of Egypt Energy Show 2026, Egypt signed a government-to-government framework agreement with Cyprus to link Cypriot offshore gas fields to Egypt’s liquefaction and export infrastructure.
Egypt currently operates two liquefaction plants at Idku and Damietta with a capacity of about 7.2 million tonnes per year (mtpa) and 5 mtpa respectively.
The pact also establishes a joint committee to develop governance mechanisms and coordinate negotiations among parties involved in offshore exploration and production projects offshore Cyprus.
On Monday, Cyprus-based business intelligence news portal LevantIntel had reported that Eni, which holds the license for Cyprus’s Cronos offshore gas field in partnership with TotalEnergies, has postponed the final investment decision (FID) following disagreements with the Cypriot government over contractual terms.
A January 2026 report by Associated Press (AP) had said Eni was in the final stage of deciding on the development of Cronos, estimated to hold around 3.4 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas.
Teams from Eni and TotalEnergies had met with officials from the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to discuss linking the Cronos field to Egypt’s gas and liquefaction infrastructure, Egypt Oil & Gas had reported separately in March and February 2026.
(Writing by Eman Hamed; Editing by Anoop Menon)
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