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Egypt Signs $340 Mln Oil, Gas Exploration Deals with Global Firms

Waves crash on the rocks while people gather on the shore near a construction site, as a new barrier is built to protect Alexandria's shoreline, on the Mediterranean coast, in Alexandria, Egypt, August 21, 2025. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Waves crash on the rocks while people gather on the shore near a construction site, as a new barrier is built to protect Alexandria's shoreline, on the Mediterranean coast, in Alexandria, Egypt, August 21, 2025. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
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Egypt Signs $340 Mln Oil, Gas Exploration Deals with Global Firms

Waves crash on the rocks while people gather on the shore near a construction site, as a new barrier is built to protect Alexandria's shoreline, on the Mediterranean coast, in Alexandria, Egypt, August 21, 2025. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Waves crash on the rocks while people gather on the shore near a construction site, as a new barrier is built to protect Alexandria's shoreline, on the Mediterranean coast, in Alexandria, Egypt, August 21, 2025. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

Egypt has signed four agreements with international firms worth more than $340 million to explore oil and gas in the Mediterranean and Nile Delta, the Petroleum Ministry said on Saturday.

The deals, signed by the state-owned Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), provide for the drilling of 10 wells as part of the ministry's efforts to boost exploration and production, Reuters reported.

Gas production in May was 3,545 million cubic meters, down more than 40% from March 2021, according to the Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI).

The first deal, with oil giant Shell, is worth $120 million and covers three wells in the Mediterranean's Merneith offshore area, the ministry said.

Italy's Eni signed a $100 million agreement to drill three wells in the East Port Said offshore block.

A third agreement, worth $109 million, went to Arcius Energy, a joint venture 51% owned by BP and 49% by ADNOC's investment arm XRG, to operate in the North Damietta offshore area.

The ministry also announced a $14 million deal with Russia's Zarubezhneft to drill four wells in the onshore North El-Khatatba block in the Nile Delta.

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Trump Auto Tariff Hike Could Cost Germany Nearly $18 Billion in Output

A worker wears a protective mask at the Volkswagen assembly line in Wolfsburg, Germany, April 27, 2020. (Swen Pfoertner/Reuters)
A worker wears a protective mask at the Volkswagen assembly line in Wolfsburg, Germany, April 27, 2020. (Swen Pfoertner/Reuters)
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Trump Auto Tariff Hike Could Cost Germany Nearly $18 Billion in Output

A worker wears a protective mask at the Volkswagen assembly line in Wolfsburg, Germany, April 27, 2020. (Swen Pfoertner/Reuters)
A worker wears a protective mask at the Volkswagen assembly line in Wolfsburg, Germany, April 27, 2020. (Swen Pfoertner/Reuters)

The tariff hike on cars and trucks from the European Union announced by US President Donald Trump could cost Germany nearly 15 billion euros ($17.58 billion) in output, an economic institute told Reuters on Saturday.

The estimate from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) highlights the exposure of the EU's largest economy to US import tariffs, which have already cost the German automotive industry billions.

"The effects would be substantial," IfW President Moritz Schularick said, ⁠with output losses ⁠rising to around 30 billion euros over the longer term, according to the institute's analysis.

Trump said on Friday he would increase the auto tariffs to 25% next week from a previously agreed 15%, saying the bloc had not complied ⁠with its trade deal with Washington.

"Germany's already sluggish growth rate would be hit hard," IfW economist Julian Hinz said.

The institute currently expects the German economy to grow by 0.8% this year.

Other European economies with significant automotive sectors - including Italy, Slovakia, and Sweden - are also likely to suffer significant losses, it added.

The German economy minister's chief adviser advised caution towards Trump.

"The EU should ⁠simply ⁠wait and see for now," Jens Suedekum told Reuters.

"It is well known that Trump is quick to suspend or withdraw his grandiose tariff threats."

The president must explain why he thinks the EU is not complying with the existing trade agreement, Suedekum said, adding that it was also not clear whether there was a legal basis for the latest tariff threat.

"It all seems quite impulsive," the adviser said.

Business

Barclays Raises Oil Price Forecast to $100 Per Barrel in 2026

Petroleum pump jacks are pictured in an oil field in California (Reuters)
Petroleum pump jacks are pictured in an oil field in California (Reuters)
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Barclays Raises Oil Price Forecast to $100 Per Barrel in 2026

Petroleum pump jacks are pictured in an oil field in California (Reuters)
Petroleum pump jacks are pictured in an oil field in California (Reuters)

Barclays has raised its 2026 Brent crude forecast to $100 per barrel, signaling that prices could rise further if the impasse in the Strait of Hormuz continues longer than expected.

The bank cautioned that the longer the disruption lasts, the bigger and more persistent ⁠the price shock will be, stressing that $100 a barrel should not be seen as a level at which supply and demand have found a new balance.

According to Barclays, the oil market is running a deficit of around 6.6 million barrels per day that is likely to widen as the supply shock continues.

It added that if disruptions persist through the end of May, prices could reprice towards $110 a barrel.

An Iranian proposal on negotiations with the US sent crude oil futures diving on Friday, but prices remained on track for weekly gains, with Tehran still blocking the Strait of Hormuz and the US Navy blocking exports of Iranian crude.

Brent crude futures for July settled at $108.17, down $2.23 a barrel, or 2.02%. West Texas Intermediate futures finished at $101.94 a barrel, down $3.13, or 2.98%.

Oil prices have been on the rise since the US and Israel attacked Iran at the end of February, resulting in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the disruption of shipments of about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supply.

A ceasefire has been in place since April 8.

A senior official of Iran's Revolutionary Guards had threatened on Thursday “long and painful strikes” on US positions if Washington renewed attacks on Iran, pushing oil prices to intraday peaks before retreating.

Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Sarv Shakti, loaded with 46,313 metric tons of liquefied petroleum gas for India, crossed the Strait of ⁠Hormuz on Saturday, ⁠India's shipping ministry said.

The vessels with 20 crew ⁠members on board, 18 of them Indian, is expected to arrive at the Indian port of Visakhapatnam on May 13, ⁠it said ⁠in a statement said.

If the tanker completes the journey, it would become the first known Indian vessel to successfully cross the Strait of Hormuz since the US intensified its crackdown on ships tied to Iran weeks ago, a move that had pushed traffic through the crucial corridor to near-zero.

Business

Egypt Says New Gas Discovery in Nile Delta Adds 50 mcf/d to Output

The Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry said on Saturday that the discovery was achieved following the successful drilling of the exploratory well “Nidoco N-2”. Photo: Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry
The Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry said on Saturday that the discovery was achieved following the successful drilling of the exploratory well “Nidoco N-2”. Photo: Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry
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Egypt Says New Gas Discovery in Nile Delta Adds 50 mcf/d to Output

The Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry said on Saturday that the discovery was achieved following the successful drilling of the exploratory well “Nidoco N-2”. Photo: Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry
The Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry said on Saturday that the discovery was achieved following the successful drilling of the exploratory well “Nidoco N-2”. Photo: Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry

Egypt has announced a new natural gas discovery in the Nile Delta with an estimated production of around 50 million cubic feet per day (mcf/d). This will add to the country’s current output of about 4.2 billion cubic feet daily.

In a statement, the Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ministry said on Saturday that the discovery was achieved following the successful drilling of the exploratory well “Nidoco N-2” in a concession area operated by the Italian Eni in partnership with the British BP.

The ministry said the well was drilled onshore using advanced directional drilling technologies, which helped reduce costs and improve operational efficiency.

Petroleum Minister Karim Badawi inspected the EDC-56 drilling rig that carried out operations in the West Abu Madi area of Kafr El Sheikh governorate, around 3 km offshore in shallow waters at a depth of approximately 10 meters.

The West Abu Madi development area is operated by Eni in partnership with BP and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation through Petrobel, a joint venture between EGPC and Eni.

Also Saturday, Badawi said Egypt reduced arrears owed to international oil and gas partners to about $714 million ⁠by the end of ⁠April 2026 from $6.1 billion ⁠in June 2024, with plans to clear all outstanding dues by the end of June.