Engineer Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, and Mr. George Papanastasiou, Cypriot Minister of Energy, Commerce, and Industry, witnessed the initial signing of the fiscal system agreement for the development project of the Cypriot "Aphrodite" gas field and its connection to Egypt. This took place on the sidelines of the Mediterranean Offshore Conference (MOC 2026), hosted at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina from October 20 to 22.
The agreement comes as part of finalizing the financial, commercial, and regulatory frameworks necessary to proceed with the project of connecting the "Aphrodite" field to Egyptian infrastructure, thereby supporting the acceleration of its implementation steps, paving the way for transporting the gas produced from the field to Egypt, and capitalizing on Egypt's advanced capabilities in receiving, processing, and liquefying natural gas in preparation for directing it to local and global markets in accordance with market needs and the economic feasibility of the project.
The agreement was signed by Dr. Mohamed El-Bagoury, Head of the Central Department for Legal Affairs at the Ministry, representing the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, and Mr. Javier La Rosa, Vice President of Chevron Eastern Mediterranean.
The project represents one of the vital pathways to enhance integration in the natural gas sector between Egypt and Cyprus by linking Cypriot gas resources with Egyptian infrastructure. This allows for maximizing the economic value of discoveries in the Eastern Mediterranean, utilizing Egyptian facilities to support gas processing, liquefaction, and trading in global markets, and strengthening Egypt's role as a regional hub for the trade and commerce of natural gas.
The progress in finalizing the regulatory frameworks for the project reflects the continued joint efforts between the Egyptian and Cypriot sides, in cooperation with international companies, to transform cooperation opportunities in the Eastern Mediterranean into actionable projects that support the efficient utilization of gas resources and enhance investment opportunities in the region.
In a related context, Engineer Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Italian company Saipem and the Egyptian Modern Drilling Company (MDC). This aims to strengthen cooperation between Egyptian and international companies operating in the oil and gas industry, expand partnership areas and opportunities, and exchange technical and technological expertise.
The MoU was signed by Engineer Alessandro Puliti, CEO of Saipem, and Engineer Tamer Salah, Chairman and Managing Director of Modern Drilling Company.
The memorandum of understanding aims to open new horizons for cooperation between the two sides and leverage the technical and technological expertise and capabilities possessed by both companies. This supports the prospects of implementing joint works and projects in oil and gas activities and enhances the opportunities for Egyptian companies to expand their scope of cooperation with specialized international firms.
The agreement and the memorandum of understanding come within the framework of the momentum witnessed at the MOC 2026 conference to foster international partnerships, advance joint projects, and expand cooperation opportunities among oil and gas companies. This supports the economic utilization of energy resources and opens new avenues for investment, as well as the transfer of expertise and technology.
