Egypt plans to launch a new global tender to explore for natural gas in at least 10 areas in the Mediterranean Sea and the waters of the Nile Delta, according to a government official who spoke to Asharq Bloomberg.

The announcement of the international bidding may coincide with the International Mediterranean Petroleum Basin Conference and Exhibition (MOC), which will be held in Alexandria next October.

 Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Karim Badawi, agreed with foreign partners working in Egypt to accelerate development plans for the concession sites, in order to add new wells to the production network during the next few months, the source added.

The Egyptian government aims to increase natural gas production by the end of 2024 to about 5 billion cubic feet per day, according to a government official who spoke to Asharq Bloomberg earlier in August.

The Egyptian government agreed with the Italian company Eni to construct a fixed gasification unit in Damietta, at a cost of $150 million without a cargo storage warehouse, according to a government official who spoke to Asharq Bloomberg in August.

This gasification aims to receive imported shipments of liquefied gas and return it to its gaseous state. The source also pointed to the floating unit whose manufacture is being negotiated.