Egypt has signed four new oil and gas exploration agreements that are expected to bring in new investments of at least $155 million. The agreements provide for the drilling of some 30 wells in the western desert, Gulf of Suez, and the Nile Valley, the country's oil ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. They also include a signing bonus of around $10.5 million. The state-run Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) signed two deals with the IEOC, a unit of Italy's Eni, one for drilling four wells in Siwa Oasis and the other for drilling 13 wells in El-Razeq region. Both concession areas lie in the Western Desert. The third deal was signed with Merlon Petroleum El Fayum Company for exploring the Nile Valley area, and the fourth was signed between Egypt's state-run Ganope Petroleum Company, Pacific Oil, and ZNP for exploring in the Gulf of Suez.
