Egypt announces major natural gas discovery in Western Desert

Khalda Petroleum Company has announced a new natural gas discovery in the Western Desert, following drilling and electrical logging that confirmed the presence of gas with an estimated production rate of approximately 36 million cubic feet per day (mmcf/d), as reported by Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources.

On Monday, the ministry stated that testing and initial flow assessments are currently in progress, with plans to start production from the exploratory well, Gomana-1, on November 19. This discovery is part of the ministry’s strategy to enhance production rates and attract investment partners to increase exploration drilling activities.

Khalda Petroleum is a joint venture between the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) and the U.S.-based Apache Corporation. In September, EGPC entered into an agreement with Apache for exploration and development that includes five new blocks, involving the drilling of 14 wells in the Western Desert with a total investment of $35 million and a $25 million signing bonus.

Apache has been operating in Egypt since the mid-1990s and is a key producer in the Western Desert. In May, Khalda Petroleum discovered the South NUT-1 well in the same region, which began production in September with a rate of 50 mmcf/d of natural gas.

Recent oil discovery in West Fewebs-1

Additionally, in August 2025, Khalda Petroleum Company announced an oil discovery in the West Fewebs-1 area. The well was drilled to a depth of 270 feet into the Paleozoic sands, yielding a production rate of 7,165 barrels of oil per day through a 1-inch opening, with an oil quality of 44 degrees and 23 million cubic feet of gas accompanying it. Also, electrical logs from the well indicated the presence of hydrocarbons in the Paleozoic layer, which has a total net thickness of 462 feet.