Mining News:BP Makes a Significant Deep Gas Discovery in Egypt’s Nile Delta

This mining news was released on 31 January 2008.
BP Egypt today announced that it has made a significant gas discovery at record depths in the Nile Delta.
The Satis discovery is located in the North El Burg Offshore, Nile Delta concession, some 50 kilometres north of Damietta. The well was drilled to a Nile Delta record depth of more than 6,500 metres and is the first significant high-pressure, high-temperature, offshore Oligocene discovery.
Satis is a major technical achievement that demonstrates the great potential of the deeper reservoirs within the Nile Delta and will require further appraisal.
The parties to the North El Burg offshore concession agreement are: BP, operator (50 per cent) and IEOC, the affiliate of Italy’s ENI in Egypt (50 per cent). Satis was drilled by the Constellation II jack-up rig, in a water depth of 90 metres.
Andy Inglis, BP’s chief executive of Exploration & Production said: “This is a significant discovery, which will underscore our position as a major producer in the growing Egyptian gas market for many years to come.”

Notes to Editors:
BP has been operating in Egypt for over 40 years, primarily in oil and gas exploration and production. To date BP Egypt has produced almost 40 per cent of Egypt’s entire oil production and close to 30 per cent of gas demand with its partners.
Egypt’s offshore Nile Delta is an important part of the company’s upstream portfolio. BP has interests in four exploration concessions, with operatorship of three.
Satis is BP’s third deep gas discovery in the Nile Delta. BP made its first discovery at Raven in 2003, followed by the more recent Taurus Deep find in 2007.
Satis is in the North El Burg offshore concession; Raven and Taurus Deep are both within the North Alexandria A concession: BP, operator (60 per cent) and partner RWE Dea (40 per cent). Operatorship of the North El Burg Offshore Concession was awarded to BP Exploration (Delta) Limited in June 2005. The concession lies in water depths of 60 to 100 metres. The concession lies between the Ras El Barr BP-operated development concession and Offshore Baltim development concession operated by IEOC.
EGPC/ EGAS has an entitlement under the concession’s production-sharing arrangements.
Further information:
Name: Mohamed Emara
Location: BP Egypt office
Phone : +202 706 2259
Location: BP press office, London
Phone : +44 (0) 20 7496 4076