EGYPT – Emirates National Oil Company Subsidiary Dragon Oil has in October this year completed the acquisition of BP’s concession in the Gulf of Suez, Egypt, with the approval of the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources.
The oil and gas exploration company during the announcement of full acquisition of the concession also revealed that it has plans to invest $1bn over five years to boost and extend their production.
With the new acquisition, Dragon Oil replaces BP as the partner of Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) in all oil production and discovery concessions in the Gulf of Suez, where the Gulf of Suez Petroleum Company (GUPCO) operates on behalf of the EGPC and the contractor.
The new acquisition also enhances the strategic production of the company which already has investments in a number of oils producing regions in the word which include Turkmenistan, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
Dragon Oil’s daily production which is estimated at 150,000 barrels per day is expected to rise steadily and reach a projected 300,000 barrels equivalent per day by 2026 thanks to this strategic acquisition and subsequent investment.
GUPCO Egypt currently produces 60,000 bpd through 11 concession areas while its sustainable target is of 75,000 bpd by 2021.
Dragon Oil plans to boost production to levels above 75,000 barrels per day (bpd) by increasing drilling activity.
Gulf of Suez acquisition by Dragon Oil follows the recent successes of investment in the Egyptian petroleum sector.
The investments according to a report by Daily News Egypt has had a positive impact in attracting international companies to invest in the Egyptian petroleum sector and was the main motive for signing this deal.
Dragon Oil was first founded in 1971 as Oliver Prospecting & Mining Co. Limited before changing its name to Dragon Oil Plc in 1993.
The company was acquired by ENOC in 1998 and the full acquisition resulted in the company moving its headquarters from Ireland to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
Dragon has since been gradually expanding its exploration activities to other territories and is now overseeing oil exploration and extraction activities more than four sites span across different countries in the Middle East and North Africa.
