Oil and gas extraction activity in Egypt declined in the 2023-2024 fiscal year due to lower domestic and foreign investments, according to official data.

Oil production activity receded by around 1.8 percent while that of gas plunged by nearly 13.1 percent, leading to an overall decline in the hydrocarbon operations by 4.7 percent, the Planning and Economic Development Ministry said.

In a report published on Monday, the Ministry noted that the hydrocarbon sector contributed by nearly 6.7 percent to Egypt’s GDP.

“The sector declined by about 4.7 percent last year mainly due to lower investments in new oil and gas exploration….there was also a slowdown in operations involving oil and gas well development,” the report added.

It said the slowdown also led to a 6.1 percent fall in refining production, adding that oil and gas operations started to recover towards the end of the 2023-2024 fiscal year, which ended on 30 June.

The report also noted that such developments were coupled with a surge in investments in renewable energy projects as part of a government strategy to expand renewables sources in the country’s energy mix.

(Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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