Energy & Utilities

Egypt is one of the oldest energy producers in the Middle East, with a history of commercial oil production dating back more than a century. The country benefits from low production costs and a relatively large volume of both onshore and offshore oil and gas fields. Developed infrastructure has allowed the country in past decades to maintain a sizeable export market, through shipped products and pipelines, as well as a sizeable downstream sector. However, recent years have seen production subject to more external pressures. Declining output from older fields, a traditional lack of investment in downstream sectors and a jump in domestic demand has led to the country wavering between being a net exporter and a net importer, while power plants and large-scale electricity consumers face load-shedding. The Egyptian energy sector is starting to turn the corner. After a number of years of supply and demand imbalances, the market is coming back into line. Egypt is a challenging environment, given the fixed prices, but it is also importantly, a potentially rewarding environment.

This chapter contains interviews with Tarek El Molla, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources; Hesham Mekawi, Regional President, BP North Africa; Khaled Abu Bakr, Executive Chairman, Taqa Arabia; Hesham El Amroussy, Chairman and Managing Director, ExxonMobil Egypt; and Tamer El Mahdi, Deputy CEO, Orascom Telecom Media and Technology Holding (Orascom TMT).