Egypt Adds 2.8 Trillion Cubic Feet of Gas Reserves and Targets 330 Million Cubic Feet a Day
Egypt is working to add about 330 million cubic feet of gas a day before the end of this year, CNBC Arabia reported from the general assembly of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company, and has recorded 9 new discoveries that added about 2.8 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves. The larger share of the daily addition, 250 million cubic feet, comes from the Zohr and West Mina fields in the Mediterranean before the year ends. The remaining 80 million comes from the Meleiha fields in the Western Desert before the end of September.
The exploration pipeline is more than twice what has been found
The 9 discoveries are the confirmed part. The prospective part is larger. 16 new gas exploration opportunities have been identified targeting resources put at about 6 trillion cubic feet, more than twice the 2.8 trillion already booked, on our calculation. The source figures are both approximate and the multiple cannot be fixed more tightly than that. 4 new blocks have been awarded for gas exploration with investment approaching 200 million dollars in the Mediterranean and the Delta. 3 exploration wells are being drilled now, for completion before the end of the year.
| Item | Figure | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Daily addition, Zohr and West Mina | 250 million cubic feet a day | Before end 2026 |
| Daily addition, Meleiha | 80 million cubic feet a day | Before end September |
| Gas reserves added | 2.8 trillion cubic feet | From 9 new discoveries |
| Exploration opportunities identified | About 6 trillion cubic feet | 16 opportunities |
| New blocks awarded | Approaching 200 million dollars | 4 blocks, Mediterranean and Delta |
Figures as announced at the general assembly of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company on 16 September 2026, reported by CNBC. The 250 million and 80 million figures were announced by the Ministry of Petroleum; the exploration figures were given by the company’s managing director.
Reserves against the increment
Set the 2.8 trillion cubic feet of new reserves against the 330 million cubic feet a day being added and the ratio is roughly 23 years of that increment, on our calculation. That is an arithmetic comparison and not a field life: reserves are produced against total offtake, not against one year’s addition. It sizes the discovery against the thing the discovery is meant to feed, which the announcement does not do.
The company also says it met 100 percent of the electricity sector’s fuel needs across the year. That claim and the 330 million cubic feet a day belong together: the additions are being framed against domestic power demand rather than against export capacity.
Why it matters: The two numbers announced here work on different horizons. The 80 million cubic feet a day from the Western Desert is due within a fortnight and reaches this winter’s supply; the 250 million from the Mediterranean is dated only to before the end of December. The 2.8 trillion cubic feet the discoveries added changes nothing in the current heating season and everything in the ones after it, which is why the company is framing the daily additions against domestic power demand rather than against export capacity.
Outlook: The timing of the Mediterranean volumes has not been given a date. The drilling has: 3 exploration wells finish before the end of the year, and the 16 identified opportunities carry a target more than twice the size of what the 9 discoveries delivered.
Sources: CNBC.
