Egypt has brought a new natural gas source into production in the Mediterranean, with Shell starting output from the Mina West field as the country seeks to strengthen domestic supplies amid declining production.

The field, located in the North El-Amriya concession, has an estimated production capacity of 160 million cubic feet of gas per day. Discovered in 2023, Mina West adds to Egypt’s offshore gas resources and provides another potential source of supply for its domestic energy market.

The development comes as Egypt faces pressure to reverse a sustained decline in natural gas production, making new discoveries and faster project development increasingly important to its energy supply.

Existing infrastructure speeds development

Shell connected Mina West to its existing West Delta Deep Marine infrastructure, allowing the company to bring the field online more quickly.

Using established offshore facilities helped accelerate project completion rather than requiring an entirely new infrastructure network. The approach also enables the field to feed into an existing production system.

Shell operates the project with a 60% ownership stake, while a subsidiary of Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC) holds the remaining 40%.

Egypt faces production decline

The addition comes against a backdrop of weakening domestic gas output. Egypt produced approximately 112.6 billion cubic feet of natural gas in August, compared with 214.7 billion cubic feet in the same month of 2021. That represents a decline of about 48% over the period.

Output was also approximately 10.5% lower than in August of the previous year, highlighting the challenges facing the country’s gas industry.

Mina West’s estimated daily capacity of 160 million cubic feet could provide additional volumes as Egypt works to strengthen domestic production.

However, its estimated capacity should not be confused with actual daily output.

Shell’s regional energy operations

Shell is a global energy and petrochemicals company headquartered in London, with operations in more than 70 countries and approximately 93,000 employees worldwide.

The company has operated in Nigeria for more than five decades and maintains interests across deepwater exploration, liquefied natural gas, industrial gas distribution and renewable energy solutions.