BP Plans to Add 100 Million ft³/day to Egypt’s Gas Output in 2026

BP is planning to boost Egypt’s natural gas production by around 100 million cubic feet per day starting in the first half of 2026, as the energy major accelerates development work in the Mediterranean to help ease pressure on the country’s strained energy balance, a government official told Bloomberg.

The additional output will come from the Fayoum-6 development well, located within BP’s concession in the West Nile Delta deepwater area, one of Egypt’s most important offshore gas hubs. Alongside gas, the well is also expected to produce associated condensates, the official said, requesting anonymity due to the commercial sensitivity of the plans.

BP intends to invest more than $150 million in drilling and development work to fast-track production, with activities already under way to ensure the well comes online as scheduled in 2026. The move reflects renewed efforts by international energy companies to stabilise output in Egypt after years of natural decline in mature fields.

Any increase in domestic gas supply would be significant for Egypt, which has been grappling with a widening gap between production and consumption. Natural gas output has fallen to about 4.2 billion cubic feet per day, while daily demand averages roughly 6.2 billion cubic feet, rising to as much as 7.2 billion cubic feet during the summer months.

That imbalance has forced Cairo to ramp up imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to secure electricity supplies, particularly during peak demand periods. Two years ago, shortages contributed to widespread power cuts that extended to industrial users, underscoring the political and economic sensitivity of the gas sector.

The planned BP production increase is expected to partially reduce Egypt’s reliance on LNG imports, though officials caution it will not eliminate the need for overseas supplies in the near term.

Despite efforts to revive upstream production, Egypt plans to continue importing LNG until at least 2029–2030, according to officials, as it balances energy security with declining output from older fields.

To support this strategy, the country has expanded its regasification capacity. Three floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) are currently operating at the Ain Sokhna port, with a combined maximum capacity of around 2.25 billion cubic feet per day. An additional vessel, Energos Winter, is stationed at Damietta, with capacity of about 450 million cubic feet per day.

BP remains one of the largest foreign investors in Egypt’s energy sector, with a long-standing presence in gas production across the Nile Delta and the Mediterranean. The Fayoum-6 well is part of a broader strategy to extract additional value from existing infrastructure, allowing faster and more cost-effective production compared with greenfield developments.