On 8 July a high-ranking delegation from Zohr operator Eni flew into Cairo to meet new oil minister Karim Badawi (MEES, 5 July). Both sides are attempting to mend bridges after tensions rose in recent months due to both a rising receivables bill and steep output decline to well below 2bn cfd at Zohr (MEES, 21 June). Eni earlier this year shelved two sidetrack wells at Zohr which had aimed to offset some of the output slump, but recent speculation in Egyptian media suggest the Italian firm could make a U-turn on that decision.
A day after the meeting with Eni, Egypt’s newly appointed cabinet finalized the concession agreements for two large offshore exploration blocks awarded to the Italian firm in September last year (MEES, 29 September 2023). Eni will hold 100% of North Port Fouad and South Nour. (CONTINUED - 338 WORDS)
