"BP": Starts Second Phase of Gas Production from Raven Field in Egypt

BP announced the start of production from the second phase of the development of the Raven field, located off the coast of Egypt, which includes connecting additional subsea wells to the existing onshore infrastructure, as part of the West Nile Delta project, according to a statement issued by the company, Sunday.

BP, as the operator, owns an 82.75% stake in the project, while Harbour Energy owns the remaining 17.25% stake.

The new wells are expected to produce about 220 billion cubic feet of gas and 7 million barrels of condensates, according to the company, which indicated that the project was implemented ahead of schedule, which allowed for the acceleration of the start of production.

Egyptian Petroleum Minister Karim Badawi had previously agreed with the British company to accelerate the drilling of the two wells and connect them to production, in exchange for the government’s commitment to pay BP’s dues according to the agreed schedule.

Egypt has offered foreign companies new incentives to increase gas production, including allowing them to export a certain share of the new production, with the proceeds used to pay the required dues, in addition to raising the price of these companies’ share of the new gas production.