Cheiron, EGAS Agree East Alexandria Offshore Gas Exploration Program

Cheiron will explore for natural gas offshore Alexandria in the East Alexandria Offshore block in the Mediterranean under a deal with EGAS, the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company, Egypt's petroleum ministry said on Monday. Minimum investment commitments in the work program exceed $42 million.

The program covers three exploration wells and reprocessing of seismic data. Its purpose is to assess gas potential in the area and identify new resources. EGAS awarded the block to Cheiron in June 2025 after an international bidding round.

Petroleum and Mineral Resources Minister Karim Badawi attended the signing. He said new agreements allow investment partners to begin work programs in new areas, accelerate research and exploration, and support adding oil and gas reserves.

Badawi also pointed to activity elsewhere in Cheiron's Egyptian portfolio across the Western Desert, the Mediterranean and the Gulf of Suez. He cited increased activity through Badr El Din Petroleum Company, horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing in the Western Desert to improve well productivity, and Cheiron's development of the West El Burullus gas field through Petroweb.

Cheiron CEO David Chi said the East Alexandria agreement expands the company's Egyptian portfolio. He said a better investment environment, along with government support in addressing project obstacles, would help Cheiron accelerate investment and pursue its exploration and production plans.

The agreement builds on Cheiron's entry into gas production at West El Burullus in November 2025. The field began producing about 45 million cubic feet per day that month. Cheiron holds a 100% working interest in the concession, which it acquired from France's Engie in 2017, and Petroweb carries out operations there. The development includes West El Burullus and nearby Papyrus and is designed to connect to existing gas reception infrastructure on the Mediterranean coast near Alexandria, Cheiron's 2023 project approval said.

Founded in the late 1980s, Cheiron is an independent Egyptian oil and gas exploration and production company focused on extending the life of mature, medium-sized fields and improving recovery. It expanded its Western Desert business in 2021 by completing the acquisition of a 50% interest in Shell's upstream assets there. Cheiron lists ratification of the merged Badr El Din concession agreement among its 2026 milestones, saying this reflects continued development of its Egyptian asset base.

Egypt is trying to expand domestic production. The East Alexandria award moves a bid-round result into a funded exploration program that tests Mediterranean gas potential and draws on Cheiron's mature-field experience and West El Burullus gas operations.