Prime Minister Dr Mostafa Madbouly witnessed at the government headquarters in the New Administrative Capital the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding between the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources and global firm ExxonMobil and its partner Qatar Energy.
The agreement covers cooperation to maximize utilization of Egypt’s natural gas infrastructure and to study linking it with Cypriot discoveries, as part of efforts to reinforce Egypt’s position as a regional hub for natural gas trade and exchange in the Mediterranean.
The ceremony was attended by Engineer Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, and senior representatives from ExxonMobil and Qatar Energy in Egypt. The memorandum of understanding was signed by Dr Mohamed El-Bagoury, Head of the Central Department for Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources; Mr Kanan Nariman, Vice President of ExxonMobil for LNG Market Development; and Dr Ali Al-Manae, Director of International Production and Exploration at Qatar Energy.
The memorandum aims to strengthen cooperation between Egypt and the two companies, building on Egypt’s status as a regional energy hub and enabling the utilization of Egypt’s advanced gas infrastructure particularly its gas liquefaction and re‑export complexes alongside studying the possibility of linking them to Cypriot gas discoveries.
This would help maximize the economic value of gas resources and enhance regional integration in the energy sector. It also provides a commercial framework intended to secure the greatest possible benefit from natural gas resources in both Egypt and Cyprus, reinforcing Egypt’s role as a central hub for energy trade and exchange in the Eastern Mediterranean and delivering shared economic gains for all parties.
Dr Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister, stressed that cooperation with the world’s leading gas companies is in line with the state’s policy of maximizing the economic returns from Egypt’s assets. He noted that Egypt’s gas infrastructure constitutes an important competitive advantage, enabling the reception of Cypriot production and its re‑export via Egypt, thereby strengthening the country’s role as a regional energy center in the Eastern Mediterranean and beyond.
Engineer Karim Badawi said the ministry has recently engaged with ExxonMobil to explore mechanisms for leveraging the company’s gas discoveries in Cyprus by employing Egypt’s infrastructure and converting those discoveries into added economic value for all parties.
He noted that ExxonMobil and its partner Qatar Energy operate in both Egypt and Cyprus, which supports opportunities to increase investment in Egypt in light of the success of the regional integration model. The minister explained that the memorandum represents a practical new step to study linking ExxonMobil’s discoveries in Cyprus with Egypt, following successful cooperation with Eni, Total, Chevron and Shell to connect the Kronos and Aphrodite fields to Egyptian infrastructure.
This reflects Egypt’s openness to further partnerships with Cyprus and international companies operating in both countries, with the aim of connecting Cypriot gas discoveries to Egyptian liquefaction complexes for re‑export to global markets or for maximizing domestic utilization.