Report: Egypt's Opportunity, Europe's Energy Map Re-shaping

Despite Russia-Ukraine crisis, Egypt has the necessary capabilities to become one of the alternatives for energy in Europe, in light of the important and vital role Cairo plays in the "Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum".

In September 2020, representatives of six countries bordering the Mediterranean signed in Cairo a charter to transform the East Mediterranean Gas Forum into a regional organization.

A joint declaration was issued by the ministers of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which stated: "The Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum will serve as a platform that brings together gas producers, consumers and transit countries, to develop a common vision and establish an organized systematic dialogue on natural gas policies."

Therefore, Egypt can play an important role that no other country in the region can play, by reserving its position on the European energy map table with regard to energy supplies, to Greece and Europe.

However, Cairo does not currently have the capabilities to be an alternative to Russian gas, because Europe practically needs more than 200 trillion thermal units, as annual consumption, and therefore Egypt cannot secure this large amount.

Egypt is looking beyond exporting liquefied gas to Europe to producing and exporting electricity in a way that will contribute significantly to resolving the crisis and persifying the sources of energy supply for the old continent.

Practically speaking, the European policy has included gas and nuclear energy as clean energy in its programs, and this allows Europe to depend on this energy from 2040 to 2050.

Therefore, Egypt has an important space to be among the main partners for exporting energy, both gas and electricity, to Europe.

The Greek Energy Ministry said last November: "Greece and Egypt have agreed to expand the scope of their cooperation in the supply of liquefied natural gas and to study the possibility of building a gas pipeline between the two countries under the sea."

Egypt and Cyprus also signed an agreement in May 2018 to extend a pipeline from the Cypriot "Aphrodite" field, whose reserves are estimated between approximately 3.6 trillion and 6 trillion cubic feet.

The construction of the line is expected to be completed during the 2024-2025 fiscal year, which is the time set for the completion of the development plan for the production of the Cypriot "Aphrodite" field.

Moreover, Egyptian liquefied gas may provide some of the European energy needs, in light of the high prices in the world.

Egypt is currently able to increase its production per day to reach 7 and a half billion cubic feet of gas, after its natural gas production amounted to about 6.550 billion cubic feet per day in 2019-2020.

The Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) stated that the total exports of natural and liquefied gas amounted to 3.5 million tons, during the first half of the 2021-2022 fiscal year, and it is expected to rise to 7.5 million tons by the end of the current fiscal year, according to the Middle East News Agency.