Egypt to achieve self-sufficiency of natural gas in 2018: minister

Egyptian minister of oil, Tariq al-Mulla, said on Friday the country would achieve "self-sufficiency of natural gas by the end of 2018."

"The discovery of the gas field Zohr in the Mediterranean sea, and the start of production of 'West Delta' in north Alexandria promote Egypt's production of natural gas and contribute in meeting big share of the local market needs," al-Mulla added during his meeting with the members of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Egypt.

He described as "a story of success" the implementation of 21 projects in the past three years for advancing the natural gas field.

He added Egypt adopts a serious program to run an oil and natural gas industry that could compete with the world's leading companies and could be a regional base for energy.

Once an energy exporter, Egypt has turned into a net importer in recent years, squeezed by declining production and increasing consumption.

Egypt's domestic gas production is currently about 4.35 billion cubic feet per day compared with consumption of around 5.2 billion, according to official statistics.

On Thursday, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi inaugurated the production at the West Nile Delta Project, the largest gas field in the Mediterranean Sea.

The project is expected to cover one quarter of Egypt's gas needs upon the completion of all phases. It is expected to develop 5 trillion cubic feet of gas and 55 million barrels of condensate reserve.

Peak production is expected to reach 1.2 billion cubic feet a day of gas, which is equivalent to approximately 25 percent of Egypt's current gas production.

Also, Italian company Eni's giant Mediterranean gas field Zohr, discovered in August 2015 with an estimated 30 trillion cubic feet of gas, is expected to produce about 1 billion cubic feet of gas per day by the end of 2017. Enditem