Italian energy company Eni said it signed a framework agreement to develop Egyptian oil and gas reserves that calls for as much as $5 billion in investments.
Eni Chief Executive Officer, Claudio Descalzi, met over the weekend with Egyptian Petroleum Minister Sherif Ismail on the sidelines of an economic summit in Sharm el-Sheik. The framework agreement calls for as much as $5 billion in total investments.
"The investments, which will be utilized through the realization of projects to be implemented in the next 4 years, are directed to the development of 200 million barrels of oil and 1.3 trillion cubic feet of natural gas," the Italian company said in a Saturday statement. "These investments will also contribute effectively to the increasing energy needs of local demand."
Political and economic instability in Egypt has left the government in debt to energy companies eager to tap the country's reserve potential. The government recently agreed to cover at least $2 billion owed to a group of operators collectively.
Eni in January signed two new agreements in the deep waters of the Mediterranean Sea following an auction held by the Egyptian government in 2013.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said from the Sharm el-Sheik conference confidence in post-revolution Egypt was reinvigorated. The secretary said he had "candid and constructive" talks with Egyptian leaders on how best to improve the business climate in Egypt.
BP and Emirati energy company Dana Gas are among those expressing interest in Egyptian reserves. For Eni, Egypt is described as "a country of historic and strategic importance."
Eni is one of the main oil producers in the country. Operating there since 1954, the company said it had an equity production of around 210,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
