(Alliance News) - Eni Spa announced over the weekend a major new gas discovery in the Nargis-1 exploration well in the "Nargis Offshore Area" concession in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, offshore Egypt.

The Nargis-1 well, drilled in 309 meters of water by the Stena Forth drillship, encountered about 61 meters of Miocene and Oligocene sandstones containing gas. The discovery may be developed by taking advantage of its proximity to existing Eni infrastructure.

Nargis-1 confirms the effectiveness of Eni's strategy with focus on the Egyptian offshore, which the company will further develop through the recent award of the North Rafah, North El Fayrouz, North East El Arish, Tiba, and Bellatrix-Seti East exploration blocks.

The "Nargis Offshore Area" concession is approximately 445,000 acres or 1,800 square kilometers in size. Chevron Holdings C Pte Ltd is the operator with a 45 percent stake, while IEOC Production BV, a wholly owned subsidiary of Eni, holds a 45 percent stake and Tharwa Petroleum Company SAE holds a 10 percent stake.

Eni recalls that it has been present in Egypt since 1954, where it operates through its subsidiary IEOC. The company is currently the country's largest producer with hydrocarbon production of about 350,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. In line with its net-zero by 2050 strategy, Eni is engaged in a number of initiatives aimed at decarbonizing Egypt's energy sector, including the development of CCS plants, renewable energy plants, agri-feedstock for biorefining, and others.

By Giuseppe Fabio Ciccomascolo, Alliance News senior reporter

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