Energy & Utilities

The extraction of oil and gas has long played a central role in the Egyptian economy, accounting for 15.3% of the country’s GDP in the 2013/14 financial year. With exploration in the North African nation dating back to the 1880s, the government has a long history of working with private firms to develop and manage its resources. Over the course of 2014 Egypt’s energy sector has seen some welcome developments. The announcement of a debt-repayment programme for funds owed to international oil companies (IOCs) has restored confidence in the upstream segment and brought pledges of increased investment from larger operators such as the UK’s BP. In the meantime, exploration for new resources continues. However, considerable challenges remain to be overcome, and the power outages that Egyptian individuals and businesses faced in 2014 are likely to remain a part of daily life for some time to come.

This chapter contains interviews with Sherif Ismail, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources; Ross Clarkson, CEO, TransGlobe; and Ibrahim Sarhan, Chairman, e-finance.