Egypt has paid about $5 billion in overdue bills to foreign oil and gas partners and plans to reduce the remaining arrears to $1.2 billion by June 2026, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said, according to Reuters.
He noted that total arrears stood at $6.1 billion as of June 30, 2024, adding that the government is also now settling partners’ monthly invoices on schedule.
Egypt had previously delayed payments to international oil companies due to a foreign currency shortage, a situation that slowed investment, reduced gas output, and forced the country from 2022 to rely heavily on imports, either from neighbouring Israel or through costly liquefied natural gas cargoes.
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However, after securing a $35 billion deal in 2024 with the United Arab Emirates for the rights to develop a prime stretch of Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, the government began repaying oil companies.
Egypt’s gas production reached 3,635 million cubic meters in October last year, slightly higher than the 3,525 million cubic meters recorded in September, but still below the 3,851 million cubic meters produced in October 2024, according to data from the Joint Organizations Data Initiative.
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Image Credit: Reuters
