ZOHR INCREASES OUTPUT

BLOOMBERG - Egypt is working with Eni SpA, operator of the giant Zohr gas field, to fast-track output and end the country's need to import liquefied natural gas as early as this year, Oil Minister Tarek el-Molla said.

Zohr, the largest undersea gas discovery in the Mediterranean, will pump 1.7 billion cubic feet per day before the end of 2018, el-Molla said in a televised ceremony to inaugurate the field. Egypt is talking with Rome-based Eni to increase output to reach the 2019 production target this year instead, he said.

"God willing, by the end of the year when we reach the second phase of production, we can stop importing LNG," el-Molla said Wednesday.

Zohr's reserves -- estimated at about 30 trillion cubic feet -- may offer a permanent solution to the power shortages of the most populous Arab nation. The field's output will also help ease pressure on Egypt's economy, which has struggled with a shortage of foreign currency since a 2011 uprising. Egypt now imports liquefied natural gas, or LNG, at a high cost to meet its energy needs, and Zohr's production could put an end to the tenders that suppliers from Glencore Plc to Trafigura PTE Ltd. have won in past years.

LNG Savings

"The 350 billion cubic feet that we're now producing can save us from buying three cargoes of LNG, which means we can save $60 million per month -- about $720 million a year," el-Molla said. "By the end of 2018, when the country reaches self-sufficiency, it will be able to save $250 million a month."

Zohr, which Eni discovered in August 2015, has had a target of pumping 2.7 billion cubic feet per day by the end of 2019. Russia's state-owned producer Rosneft PJSC closed a deal in October to acquire 30 percent of the field, and BP Plc bought a 10 percent stake last year.

Zohr's output is not only moving Egypt closer toward achieving energy self-sufficiency. It might also restore the nation as a gas supplier for the eastern Mediterranean region.

"I want 10 Zohrs," Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said at the televised ceremony, prompting laughter from other officials.

-----

Earlier:

2017, December, 20, 19:20:00 BP: ZOHR HAS STARTED BP - BP confirmed that production has started from the super-giant Zohr gas field, offshore Egypt. The field is operated by Eni, through its joint venture with The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), and is the largest natural gas discovery yet to be made in the Mediterranean Sea.

2017, December, 11, 10:05:00 EGYPT'S ZOHR WILL COME Gas from Zohr will also help ease pressure on the economy of the most populous Arab nation, which has been plagued by a shortage of foreign currency since a 2011 uprising. Zohr, which Eni discovered in August 2015, has an estimated reserve of about 850 billion cubic meters of natural gas in place.

2017, October, 13, 12:35:00 ROSNEFT - ENI GAS DEAL Rosneft closed the deal to acquire a 30% stake in the concessions agreement for the development of Zohr field, the largest gas field in the Mediterranean Sea, from Italian company Eni S.p.A. Русский | English

2016, November, 28, 18:30:00 BP BUYS 10% BP announced that it has agreed to buy from Eni a 10% interest in the Shorouk concession offshore Egypt, which contains the super-giant Zohr gas field, for $375 million.

2016, July, 7, 18:00:00 SAIPEM CONTRACT: $1.5 BLN Eni engineering and construction subsidiary Saipem on Thursday announced the award of offshore engineering and construction contracts with a combined value of more than USD 1.5 billion, including work related to the Zohr gasfield development project in Egyptian waters.

2015, August, 31, 18:55:00 ENI DISCOVERS EGYPT Eni has made a world class supergiant gas discovery at its Zohr Prospect, in the deep waters of Egypt. The discovery could hold a potential of 30 trillion cubic feet of lean gas in place covering an area of about 100 square kilometres.