Egypt-Saudi Arabia maritime demarcation agreement makes headlines again - AL MONITOR

Tiran (foreground) and Sanafir (background) islands between
Egypt's Sinai Peninsula and Saudi Arabia

July 9, 2019

Rami Galal 

CAIRO — The issue of sovereignty over the two islands of Tiran and Sanafir in the Red Sea at the Strait of Tiran leading to the Gulf of Aqaba is once again making headlines in Egypt. The country had witnessed a wave of anger three years ago against the backdrop of the signing on April 8, 2016, by Egypt and Saudi Arabia of a maritime border demarcation agreement, under which Saudi Arabia gained sovereignty over the islands.

During a meeting with an Egyptian parliamentary delegation June 26, Red Sea Gov. Gen. Ahmed Abdullah revealed great gains for the Egyptian economy that are about to materialize as a result of the 2016 agreement. “A large number of people focused on the islands of Tiran and Sanafir and completely ignored the economic gains that the Egyptian citizen will gain,” he said.

According to Abdullah, Egypt has been able, after the agreement, to exploit the wealth in the Red Sea. He explained that the border demarcation agreement allows Egypt to drill in deep territorial waters because the International Law of the Sea defines territorial waters and economic waters as well as the equidistant line between countries. The International Law of the Sea does not determine the maritime borders between countries.

Aramco likely to begin refining fuel in Egypt in 1Q2018 – officials - ENTERPRISE

Monday, 27 November 2017

Aramco likely to begin refining fuel in Egypt in 1Q2018 -officials: Saudi Aramco is likely to begin refining crude oil in Egyptian refineries in 1Q2018, an official from the Oil Ministry tells Al Shorouk, initially at the Middle East Oil Refinery (MIDOR). Egypt will receive the 700k tons of fuel per month from Aramco — under the existing five-year fuel supply agreement — for MIDOR’s refineries, with excess output being exported, the official stated. He noted that talks are still ongoing with the Saudi’s largest oil producer. Oil Minister Tarek El Molla had confirmed earlier this month that talks had been taking place with Aramco to refine fuel here and that refining would begin at some point in early 2018. This follows other reports that Aramco had agreed to a plan last month to ship crude through the SUMED pipeline and use Sidi Kerir as a center for exporting refined output to Europe.

Egypt to open new areas in Red Sea for oil, gas exploration - BUSINESS STANDARD

Cairo July 14, 2017, 04:52 IST
IANS

Egyptian Petroleum Minister Tarek el-Mulla said on Thursday that new areas in the Red Sea will be open for bidding for exploration as part of Egypt's effort to expand oil, gas production.

Mulla did not disclose the exact date for the bidding. He told a news conference that the bidding comes after the recent approval of the Egyptian-Saudi maritime border demarcation deal, in which Egypt agrees to transfer two Red Sea islands in the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia, Xinhua reported.

Earlier on Thursday, Mulla and Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail held a meeting to discuss a number of issues, including the latest deals and bids that aim to increase the country's crude oil and natural gas production, the official news agency MENA reported.

Aramco shipments officially resume - ENTERPRISE

Sunday, 19 March 2017

Saudi Aramco has resume shipments of petroleum products to Egypt, which received shipments on both Friday and Saturday, Oil Minister Tarek El Molla told CBC’s Lamees El Hadidi last night. The next two shipments are scheduled to arrive on 25 and 26 March and will then return to a regular schedule from next month. Egypt is set to buy c. USD 320-340 mn each month at today’s prices. El Molla had told Reuters’ Arabic service on Thursday that the shipments were expected to resume by the end of March or in early April. The resumption of shipments — part of a USD 23 bn, five-year supply agreement halted last year amid rising tensions between Cairo and Riyadh — was announced last Wednesday.

Saudi Aramco to resume oil product shipments to Egypt soon - REUTERS

Logo of Saudi Aramco is seen at the 20th Middle East Oil & Gas Show
and Conference (MOES 2017) in Manama, Bahrain, March 7, 2017.
REUTERS, Hamad I Mohammed

Wed Mar 15, 2017, 2:16pm EDTEhab Farouk, Eric Knecht, CAIRO

Saudi Arabian state oil company Aramco will resume oil product shipments to Egypt some six months after halting them suddenly, the Egyptian Petroleum Ministry said on Wednesday, signaling a potential thaw in relations after months of tension.

The ministry said in a statement that it was working with Aramco on a timetable for the resumption of shipments and that the reasons behind the October cut-off were purely commercial.

Iraq to supply Egypt with 1 million barrels monthly: ambassador - EGYPT INDEPENDENT / REUTERS

Thu, 23/02/2017 - 05:00

The Iraqi Oil Marketing Company SOMO has signed a contract for oil exports with the Egyptian government, al-Ahram quoted Iraqi ambassador to Cairo Habib Mohamed Hady al-Sadr as saying on Thursday.

The company forwarded the contract to the Petroleum Ministry for final approval, he added.

Sadr told al-Ahram newspaper that the first batch of oil, estimated at 1 million barrels, will be handed over to Egypt in the last 10 days of March 2018.

Egypt, Iraq and Jordan are preparing for a major strategic joint energy project, he added. The three countries will extend oil and natural gas pipelines from Basra oil fields through Aqaba port in Jordan to Egypt.

Egyptian delegation to visit Iraq in February to finalize agreement on crude imports - EGYPT INDEPENDENT / REUTERS

Tue, 31/01/2017 - 14:32

A delegation from the Petroleum Ministry will visit Iraq this February to finalize the draft agreement to import crude oil, minister Tarek el-Molla said on Tuesday.

Egypt aims to import 1-2 million barrels per month from Iraq.

"It’s expected the deal will be concluded during the first quarter [of the year]," Molla said.

The move follows Saudi Arabia informing Egypt in November that shipments of oil products expected under a $23 billion aid deal had been halted indefinitely.

Egypt has gone from exporting energy to being a net energy importer as domestic output has failed to keep pace with rising demand. The government is seeking alternative solutions to help the country cope.

Egypt To End Capital Controls, Reform Oil Sector Under IMF Deal - RIGZONE / REUTERS

Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Lin Noueihed

Additional reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein, Eric Knecht, and Asma Alsharif; Writing by Lin Noueihed and Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Eric Knecht

CAIRO, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Egypt will scrap its remaining caps on transfers and deposits of foreign currency by the end of June and overhaul its oil sector as part of ambitious efforts to reform the economy under an IMF agreement, the details of which were released on Wednesday.

The International Monetary Fund approved the three-year programme with Egypt in November, releasing the first $2.75 billion instalment of a $12 billion loan intended to jumpstart an economy battered by years of turmoil that has driven away investors and tourists, key sources of hard currency.

The Fund said on Wednesday that Egypt was on track to receive the second tranche of the loan, pending a visit to review progress at the end of February.

Iraq to start exporting 1m oil barrels a month to Egypt: Iraqi ambassador to Cairo - MENAFN / DAILY NEWS EGYPT

11/01/2017

An agreement signed between the Egyptian government and its Iraqi counterpart to supply Egypt with 1m barrels of Basrah Light crude oil per month with facilitated payment terms will come into effect within the next few days. The announcement was made by Habib Al-Sadr, the Iraqi ambassador to Egypt, in an interview with the Middle East News Agency on Wednesday.

The Egyptian minister of petroleum visited Baghdad in October, after Saudi Aramco halted the five-year agreement to import 700,000 tonnes of petroleum products a month to Egypt. The Saudi decision to halt shipments led a number of deputies from the National Iraqi Alliance to call on the Iraqi government to export crude oil to Egypt with facilitated payments.

Egyptian General Petroleum Corp seeks up to 178,000 tonnes gasoil - AME INFO

December 27, 2016 12:04 pm

Egyptian General Petroleum Corp (EGPC) is seeking up to 178,000 tonnes of gasoil for delivery in January, a tender document showed on Tuesday.

The state-owned company is seeking two cargoes of 30,000 to 33,000 tonnes each of 0.1 percent sulphur gasoil for delivery into Alexandria or El Dekheila ports over Jan. 11 to 13 and Jan. 22 to 24.

It is also seeking via a separate tender two cargoes of 34,000 to 36,000 tonnes each of 0.1 percent sulphur gasoil for delivery into Suez port over Jan. 11 to 13 and Jan. 24 to 26 and 35,000 to 40,000 tonnes of 0.5 percent sulphur gasoil for delivery into Ain Sukhna over Jan. 23 to 25.

Egypt seeks to import crude directly from Iraq - HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

12/23/2016Reporting by Amina Ismail; writing by Ahmed Aboulenein; editing by David Clarke and David Evans

CAIRO (Reuters) -- Egypt's Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla said his country was seeking to reach an agreement with Iraq over importing crude oil directly and that he hoped to finalize the deal by the first quarter of 2017.

El Molla told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) that Egypt aims to import between 1 million and 2 million barrels per month from Iraq.

The move follows Saudi Arabia informing Egypt in last month that shipments of oil products expected under a $23 billion aid deal had been halted indefinitely.

Egypt denies rift with Saudi, drift toward Iran - REUTERS

Sat Dec 10, 2016 | 4:32am EST
Reporting By William Maclean; Writing by Noah Browning; Editing by Louise Heavens

Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri on Saturday hailed a "special relationship" with Saudi Arabia, denying reports that the two powerful Arab nations had fallen out after Egypt expressed support for the Russian intervention in Syria.

Egypt voted in favor of a Russian-backed U.N. resolution on Syria in October that excluded calls to stop bombing Aleppo, which Saudi Arabia strongly opposed.

The kingdom informed Egypt last month that shipments of oil products expected under a $23 billion aid deal had been halted indefinitely, but Shukri denied the nations were at loggerheads and said any disagreements had been exaggerated.

Kuwait to supply Egypt with 2 million barrels of oil a month - FOX NEWS / ASSOCIATED PRESS

November 15, 2016

CAIRO – Egypt's state news agency says Kuwait has agreed to supply Egypt with 2 million barrels of crude per month, starting in January.

Tuesday's announcement comes more than a month after Saudi Arabia halted previously agreed fuel shipments to Egypt as differences over the conflicts in Syria and Yemen strained ties between the two nations.

The Saudi move has ratcheted up pressure on Egypt as it tries to revive a battered economy and overcome a shortage of dollars.

Cairo floated its currency this month and significantly hiked fuel prices.

The MENA news agency says that under the deal with Kuwait, Egypt will get the crude at international prices with no discounts, but with a nine-month grace period.

Saudi oil shipments to Egypt halted indefinitely, Egyptian officials say - REUTERS

A Saudi Aramco employee sits in the area of its stand at the
 Middle East Petrotech 2016, in Manama, Bahrain, September 27, 2016.
REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed

Mon Nov 7, 2016 | 1:12pm ESTReporting by Ehab Farouk in Cairo and Maha El Dahan and Rania El Gamal in Abu Dhabi, Writing by Lin Noueihed; Editing by Andrew Torchia, Catherine Evans and Mark Potter

Saudi Arabia has informed Egypt that shipments of oil products expected under a $23 billion aid deal have been halted indefinitely, suggesting a deepening rift between the Arab world's richest country and its most populous.

Saudi Arabia has been a major donor to Egypt since President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi seized power in mid-2013 but Riyadh has become frustrated with Sisi's lack of economic reforms and his reluctance to be drawn into the conflict in Yemen.

Egypt's oil minister makes rare trip to Iran for oil talks after Saudi suspension - REUTERS

Tarek El Molla, Egypt's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources
in Nicosia, Cyprus August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou

Sun Nov 6, 2016 | 4:25pm ESTWriting by Eric Knecht; Editing by Ahmed Aboulenein and Louise Ireland

Egyptian Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla was on his way to Iran on Sunday to try to strike new oil deals, sources close to his delegation said at Cairo airport, after Saudi Arabia suspended its oil agreement last month.

After that suspension, Egypt voted in favor of a Russian-backed U.N. resolution on Syria in October that excluded calls to stop bombing Aleppo, which Saudi Arabia strongly opposed.

Saudi Arabia has showered Egypt with billions of dollars in aid since 2013, when President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted elected Mohammed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood and banned the Islamist movement, which Riyadh opposes.

After Saudi Halts Oil Shipments, Egypt Turns to Iraq Deal - NEW YORK TIMES / ASSOCIATED PRESS

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
OCT. 31, 2016, 12:40 P.M. E.D.T.

CAIRO — Egypt's state news agency says the country's oil ministry has signed a memorandum of understanding with its Iraqi counterpart to pave the way for Egypt to import oil from Iraq.

Oil Minister Tarek el-Mulla was quoted by MENA on Monday as saying that the agreement will "open the doors" for developing oil cooperation with Iraq.

His Iraqi counterpart, Jabar al-Luaibi, says that the agreement prepares the way for wide cooperation, including on Iraqi oil exports to Egypt. He says Iraq offered Egypt the opportunity to invest in 12 Iraqi oil fields.

The deal comes nearly three weeks after Saudi Arabia's abrupt decision to halt previously agreed oil shipments to Egypt, putting heavy pressure on the government. Egypt angered the Saudis by voting in favor of Russia's draft resolution on Syria.

Egypt: No confirmation yet on whether Saudi oil aid will resume in November – El-Molla - ECOFIN AGENCY

Tuesday, 25 October 2016 - 13:01Anita Fatunji

(Ecofin Agency) - Egyptian Oil Minister, Tarek El-Molla (photo), on Tuesday revealed that no confirmation has been received yet as regards when Saudi Arabia’s will recommence the supply of petroleum to the country.

This is coming after supplies were postponed at the beginning of this month.

“The contract is in effect for five years so whether it's interrupted for a week or a month or two or three the contract is in effect and still on,” El-Molla said adding that there was no confirmation about whether or not the aid would resume next month.

In March, Saudi Arabia agreed to provide Egypt with 700,000 tonnes of refined oil products per month for five years under a $23 billion deal signed between Saudi Aramco and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) but Egypt stopped receiving its aid some weeks ago, Reuters reports.

The spokesman for the Egyptian Oil Ministry, Hamdy Abdel-Aziz, on October 10, 2016, said that, Aramco officially informed Cairo that the agreed oil products for October will not be supplied. He stated that the reason might be technical or logistical stressing that the Saudi company did not cancel the $23 billion deal.

Egypt's relationship with Saudi is 'solid': Prime minister - AHRAM ONLINE

Egypt's Prime Minister Sherif Ismail

Last week signs of tension surfaced between Egypt and Saudi Arabia

Ahram Online , Friday 14 Oct 2016

Egypt’s Prime Minister Sherif Ismail described the country's relationship with Saudi Arabia as “good and solid” after recent reports of diplomatic tensions between the two countries, Al-Ahram newspaper reported on Friday.

Last week, signs of tension surfaced between Egypt and the kingdom over Cairo's votes on two rival UN Security Council resolutions on Syria.

The Saudi ambassador to Cairo, Ahmed Kattan, left the country for a three-day visit to the kingdom while Saudi oil company Aramco did not deliver the monthly oil shipment to Cairo for October.

Saudi Aramco begins oil supplies to Egypt - MEMO

October 12, 2016 at 3:44 am

File photo from a Saudi-Aramco oil processing plant

Saudi Aramco restarted supplies of refined oil to Egypt, Tuesday, despite apparently failing to do so one day before and a beginnings of a broader potential rift between the two countries.

According to Hamdi Abdulaziz, a spokesman for Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), shipments have already started arriving.

Egypt and Saudi agreed on a deal worth $23 billion in April that would enable Aramco – the Kingdom’s state-owned oil company – to deliver 700,000 tons of petroleum products every month for five years.

However, reports emerged Monday that Egypt has not yet received shipments. On Monday, Aramco said that the delay in shipments is temporary, according to the Saudi news website Al-Mnatiq.

Saudi Aramco informed Egypt about suspending oil product supply: official - REUTERS

Mon Oct 10, 2016 | 8:31am EDT

Reporting by Ehab Farouk; writing by Asma Alsharif; Editing by Adrian Croft

Saudi Aramco informed the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation, Egypt's state oil company, in early October that it would halt the supply of refined oil products to Egypt, a government official told Reuters on Monday.

"Aramco informed the EGPC early this month of its inability to supply Egypt with shipments of petroleum products," the official said, without giving a timeline for the suspension or a reason.

Traders told Reuters last week that Egypt had not received October allocations of petroleum aid from Saudi Arabia, forcing its state oil buyer to rapidly increase tenders even amid a severe dollar shortage and growing arrears to oil producers.