meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Eni makes major gas discovery in Egypt

8 April 2026

Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

Italy’s Eni has made a major gas discovery in Egyptian waters after drilling a new offshore well in the Mediterranean Sea.

The reservoir holds an estimated 2 trillion cubic feet of gas as well as 130,000 barrels of condensate, according to a statement released by the Rome-headquartered oil and gas company.

The discovery was announced after the drilling of the Denise W-1 exploration well in the Temsah Concession, around 70 kilometres off the coast of Egypt.

The well was drilled at a water depth of 95 metres, and it is located less than 10km from existing gas infrastructure.

The close proximity to existing infrastructure will allow the reserve to be developed on a fast-track basis, according to Eni.

Eni said that the newly discovered reserve is similar to the nearby Temsah field, which has been in production since 2001, as it features a gas-bearing sandstone reservoir of “excellent quality” with an estimated 50 metres of productive rock.

The company also said: “The discovery reinforces Eni’s commitment to supporting Egypt’s national goals of boosting reserves and increasing gas production, thereby strengthening the country’s energy security.”

It added: “This new discovery confirms Eni’s successful strategy in substantially rejuvenating producing assets through near-field and infrastructure-led exploration.”

The drilling of the Denise W-1 well followed Eni’s signing of a binding agreement in July 2025 with Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation and Egas for a 20-year renewal of the Temsah concession.

Eni operates the Denise Development Lease of the Temsah concession with a 50% contractor working interest, alongside London-headquartered BP, which holds the remaining 50%.

The asset is operated through Petrobel, a joint-venture operating company.

Eni has been active in Egypt since 1954 and today holds a portfolio spanning exploration, development and production.

It produced 242,000 barrels of oil equivalent in 2025.

Egypt is currently seeing an uptick in activity in its gas sector as investors pour money into boosting domestic production and the country makes deals to leverage its existing liquefied natural gas (LNG) export infrastructure.

The increase in activity has come as the disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz continues to prevent the shipment of around 20% of the world’s LNG supplies to consumer nations.

While Egypt remains a net importer of natural gas, its geographical position, significant gas reserves and existing infrastructure, including two LNG export terminals, mean it can potentially capitalise on the current supply crunch.

MEED’s March 2026 report on Egypt includes:

> COMMENT: Egypt’s crisis mode gives way to cautious revival
> GOVERNMENT: Egypt adapts its foreign policy approach
> ECONOMY & BANKING: Egypt nears return to economic stability
> OIL & GAS: Egypt’s oil and gas sector shows bright spots
> POWER & WATER: Egypt utility contracts hit $5bn decade peak
> CONSTRUCTION: Coastal destinations are a boon to Egyptian construction

To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16297016/main.jpg
Wil Crisp

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Iraq sets up commission for $5bn pipeline project

    30 April 2026

    Iraq is setting up a high-level commission to oversee the development of the planned $5bn Basra-Haditha crude oil pipeline project.

    The decision was made at a meeting held on 26 April, attended by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani and the Minister of Petroleum Hayyan Abdul Ghani Al-Sawad, as well as other officials and consultants.

    The commission will be chaired by the undersecretary of the Oil Ministry and include advisers to the prime minister, along with director-generals from the Oil Ministry and the Industry & Minerals Ministry.

    Al-Sudani said the pipeline project will increase flexibility in transporting crude oil to the Turkish port of Ceyhan, as well as the Syrian port of Baniyas and Jordan’s port of Aqaba.

    The pipeline is also expected to strengthen supply to refineries in central and northern Iraq and support higher domestic refining output.

    The meeting also approved allocating $1.5bn to the project this year, with funding provided through the Iraq-China oil-for-infrastructure mechanism, according to a statement issued by the Petroleum Ministry.

    Earlier this month, Iraq’s Council of Ministers approved amendments allowing the Oil Ministry to directly invite specialised companies to bid for the 685-kilometre pipeline.

    The pipeline is expected to have a capacity of up to 2.25 million barrels a day.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16621546/main.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Construction begins on Dubai Healthcare City projects

    30 April 2026

    Dubai Healthcare City Authority (DHCA) has begun construction on Pixel DHCC and Ibn Sina+, two flagship developments in Dubai Healthcare City.

    Local contractor International Foundation Group has been appointed to carry out the enabling works.

    The two projects form part of Phase 1 of DHCA’s AED1.3bn ($354m) development programme and are scheduled for completion in November 2027.

    Pixel DHCC, designed by Hong Kong-based P&T Architects and Engineers, is planned as Dubai Healthcare City’s first LEED Platinum-certified office building. The nine-storey commercial development will cover 13,000 sq m.

    Ibn Sina+, designed by Dubai’s Design and Architecture Bureau, will be a five-storey medical complex spanning 5,800 sq m.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16611156/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Bahrain extends bid deadline for 1.2GW Sitra IWPP

    30 April 2026

     

    Bahrain’s Electricity & Water Authority (EWA) has extended the developer bidding deadline for the Sitra independent water and power plant (IWPP).

    The new deadline is 17 May. 

    The Sitra IWPP is a combined-cycle gas turbine plant expected to have a generation capacity of about 1,200MW of electricity.

    The project’s seawater reverse osmosis desalination facility will have a production capacity of 30 million imperial gallons a day (MIGD).

    It is the second deadline extension on the main works package since the tender was released in August 2025.

    Lebanon-headquartered Khatib & Alami was recently awarded a consulting contract for the project, worth $1.91m. This was despite the consultancy submitting only the third-lowest bid behind Spain’s Ayesa ($1.25m) and WSP Middle East Architectural & Engineering ($1.27m).

    EWA’s transaction advisory team for the project comprises KPMG Fakhro as the financial consultant and Trowers & Hamlins as the legal consultant.

    MEED previously reported that seven international companies and consortiums had prequalified to bid. These are:

    • Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa, UAE)
    • Acwa Power (Saudi Arabia)
    • China Energy Engineering Corporation / China Datang (Overseas Hong Kong, China)
    • Gulf Investment Corporation (Kuwait)
    • Jera (Japan)
    • Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco, South Korea)
    • Sumitomo Corporation (Japan)

    EWA first received statements of qualifications from nine interested firms in December 2024.

    The build-own-operate (BOO) project is being procured under a public-private partnership framework for 20-25 years.

    It is Bahrain’s fourth IWPP, replacing the previously planned Al-Dur 3. The Sitra IWPP is expected to be fully operational by the second quarter of 2029.

    The project is in line with EWA’s plan to replace old plants with new, more efficient ones that reduce natural gas consumption.

    Procurement for the Sitra IWPP is advancing in parallel to other EWA initiatives, including the planned 60MIGD Al-Hidd independent water plant (IWP), for which two bids were submitted earlier this year.

    The contract to develop and operate the state’s first IWP remains under bid evaluation, a source said.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16611117/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • Bidders get more time for Jebel Ali sewage EPC contract

    29 April 2026

     

    Dubai Municipality has extended the deadline for contractors to submit bids for a contract covering the expansion of the Jebel Ali sewage treatment plant (STP) phases one and two.

    Contractors now have until June to submit offers, a source told MEED. Bidding had been expected to close on 30 April.

    The upgraded facility will be capable of treating an additional sewage flow of 100,000 cubic metres a day (cm/d), with the expansion estimated to cost $300m.

    The scope includes the design, construction and commissioning of infrastructure and systems required to support the increased capacity.

    Located on a 670-hectare site in Jebel Ali, the original wastewater facility has a treatment capacity of about 675,000 cm/d following the completion of phase two in 2019, combining approximately 300,000 cm/d from phase one and 375,000 cm/d from phase two.

    The main element of the expansion involves modifications to the secondary treatment process at Jebel Ali STP phase two.

    UK-headquartered KPMG and UAE-based Tribe Infrastructure are serving as financial advisers on the project.

    Future expansion

    It is understood that the project is part of long-term plans to treat about 1.05 million cm/d once all future phases are completed.

    According to sources, this includes a Jebel Ali-based build-operate-transfer (BOT) project to be developed under a public-private partnership (PPP) model.

    It is understood that the prequalification process for this will begin in the coming months.

    In February, MEED exclusively revealed that the municipality is preparing to tender the main construction package for the Warsan STP by the end of the year.

    As MEED understands, the Warsan STP had previously been planned as a PPP project.

    The main package will now be procured as an engineering, procurement and construction contract, a source said.

    The project involves the construction of a sewage treatment plant with a capacity of about 175,000 cm/d, including treatment units, sludge handling systems and associated infrastructure.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16608027/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • UAE’s departure from Opec marks a tectonic shift

    29 April 2026

    Commentary
    Indrajit Sen
    Oil & gas editor

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    The UAE’s decision to leave Opec and the Opec+ grouping marks a significant turning point in global oil markets and highlights shifting geopolitical dynamics and evolving supply expectations.

    The UAE announced it will leave the producer alliance effective 1 May, ending nearly six decades of membership. The move reflects a broader strategic shift, as the country seeks greater flexibility over its production policy amid rising capacity and changing market conditions.

    For oil markets, this is about more than one country wanting to pump more oil. Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has spent billions of dollars over the years to raise crude production capacity to 5 million barrels a day.

    Opec+ quotas had increasingly looked as though they were stifling Abu Dhabi’s growing desire to maximise revenues by tapping into its expanded spare capacity. Leaving the Opec+ coalition gives Abu Dhabi more room to monetise those investments.

    The timing also matters. It comes against a backdrop of regional security concerns, tensions around Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, and a sense that consumers are once again being squeezed by high energy costs and depleted strategic reserves. 

    The immediate dip in the price of global benchmark Brent crude following the announcement of the UAE’s decision on 28 April showed the market’s first instinct: more UAE barrels could mean more supply and lower prices. However, the price rebound on 29 April, with Brent trading around $111 a barrel, also tells the other half of the story: extra capacity does not instantly become risk-free supply when regional bottlenecks and security threats remain front and centre.

    For Opec+, this is a blow to unity and to Saudi Arabia’s ability to marshal producer discipline. It does not mean that a price war will start tomorrow, but it raises the risk of other member states choosing to abandon the alliance’s cooperation mechanism and pursue a higher market share. In trading terms, this adds a new volatility premium: more potential supply, less cartel discipline and a Gulf energy landscape that looks significantly less predictable.

    The announcement comes at a time of heightened uncertainty in global energy markets, with geopolitical tensions, supply chain constraints and demand recovery trends all contributing to price volatility. The UAE’s exit is expected to reshape market expectations around supply flexibility and producer coordination.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/16608006/main.gif
    Indrajit Sen