Forbes: Egypt Looks to Offshore Efforts to Shore Up Gas Need

Egypt’s state-backed natural gas firm is taking steps towards meeting the country’s rising domestic demand without counting on costly and occasionally unstable foreign resources with a plan to properly explore its Mediterranean potential.

According to local media reports and Reuters, state-owned EGAS will begin seismic surveys of the country’s offshore areas after signing a deal with Norway’s PGS, allowing them to conduct two and three dimensional scans of the country’s western waters.

The agreement comes at a time when Cairo is still struggling to meet the country’s rising energy demand without looking outside its own borders – a practice that has resulted in billions in debt over the past four years.

Following the collapse of the long-standing government of Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s already stressed energy environment quickly worsened as domestic production collapsed and revenue from other sectors – namely tourism – declined, making it increasingly difficult to purchase foreign reserves. MORE