SUPPLY
Oil production in Egypt peaked in 1993 and has been
persistently declining ever since, although there was some recovery in
2007 and 2008 as new condensate output was realised. The country’s two
main oil producing regions, the Gulf of Suez and the Western Desert, are
both in decline although small finds may still be occasionally made.
Some gas is produced in both these regions but the real growth in gas in
Egypt is from the offshore Nile Delta where a series of deepwater
discoveries, the first of which came onstream in 2003, have begun to
deliver gas to the local market and to an LNG plant for export.
Considerable growth in gas output is forecast from the Nile offshore
region.
DEMAND
Egyptian
oil exports are dropping rapidly whilst consumption stays flat and the
country is likely to become a net importer by 2013. Some minor
consumption growth is forecast up to 2013 after which lack of indigenous
oil will begin to quell demand.
Gas consumption is increasing rapidly. Gas is used in new markets in the
north of the country being created as production capacity increases and
especially substituting for oil in power generation. Gas exports by both
pipeline and LNG have increased dramatically, although will probably
peak in 2010/2011.
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