Author: Rigs & Barge World

TAQA Arabia, Egypt’s leading private sector energy and utility provider, has won the Power and Water Project of the Year and the Sustainable Initiative of the Year awards at the ‘Big 5 Egypt Impact Awards 2025’ for building the country’s first and largest solar-powered desalination plant. The plant, developed by TAQA Water in partnership with Somabay, is expected to supply more than 7,300 cubic meters per day (cm/d) of clear, fresh water for Somabay’s destination. The two awards highlight the company’s leadership in clean energy innovation and its vital role in advancing Egypt’s renewable energy and sustainable development agenda, TAQA…

 The military conflict between Iran and Israel took a turn for the worse, as some missiles passed through Israel’s layered anti-missile defence system that resulted in a damage to a major medical centre and a hospital on Thursday morning. In response, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime  minister, vowed to exact a heavy price for the attack.It is almost a week since Israel launched a daring attack on Iran’s military targets, eliminating the most important figures in the military hierarchy; they included the chief of staff of the armed forces, the commander of the air force and above all, the chief…

The Japanese key gas player, Tokyo Gas, ruled out that the Israel-Iran war will directly affect its liquefied natural gas (LNG) purchases as it gets its LNG neither from the UAE nor Qatar, the company’s CEO Nobuhiro Sugesawa said. Meanwhile, he told Reuters that the company would increase its purchases from the US, from which it secures 10% of its supply. Tokyo Gas is looking at the developments of the situation with utmost interest, he said, noting that the conflict could push up the LNG prices, disrupting the global supply. Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. is Japan’s largest city gas utility,…

Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs (SCFEA) announced on 11 June that it has awarded three production concessions to Adnoc and its “strategic partners.” All three are for previously awarded exploration concessions, where the license holders made commercially viable discoveries/appraisals. Nine exploration blocks were awarded through two licensing rounds launched in 2018 and 2019, and this week’s announcements brings the total number that have been upgraded into production concessions to four. Only one exploration concession has been relinquished so far; the Offshore 1 asset held by Eni (70%) and Thailand’s PTTEP (30%) (MEES, 7 February). (CONTINUED -…

Algeria’s National Agency for the Valorisation of Hydrocarbon Resources (ALNAFT) has awarded exploration licenses of five regions, out of six, to leading oil companies through the “Algeria Bid Round 2024” competition. The six proposed areas included Grand M’Zaid located in the Oued Mya basin; Ahara located in the Illizi basin; Reggane II in the Reggane basin; Zerafa II located in the Ahnet Gourara basin; Toual II located in the Berkine basin; and Guern El Guessa II located in the Gourara Timimoun basin. According to ALNAFT, seven bids were received. After the evaluation session, five areas were granted as follows; Ahara…

Egyptians woke on 13 June to the prospect that they could be faced with painful blackouts over the coming weeks as Israel and Iran exchanged blows (MEES, 13 June). Israel typically supplies Egypt with around 1bn cfd of gas, but this is due to drop as the Chevron-operated 1.1bn cfd Leviathan and Greek firm Energean’s 500mn cfd Karish, both located offshore northern Israel, have been taken offline. Energean says that it received notice from Israel’s Energy Ministry on 13 June “ordering the temporary suspension of production and activities of the Energean Power FPSO, following the recent geopolitical escalation in the…

The International Energy Agency (IEA) released a report on the oil market medium-term outlook, where it expected structural changes in the oil market amidst the outbreak of the Israel-Iran conflict. It forecasted that global oil demand will increase by 2.5 million barrels per day (mmbl/d) between 2024 and 2030, reaching the plateau of around 105.5 mmbl/d by the end of the decade. Furthermore, the report mentioned that the global oil production is expected to grow by 5 mmbl/d reaching 114.7 mmbl/d in 2030 led by Saudi Arabia and the U.S. It attributed this increase to the robust  gains in natural…

ExxonMobil Egypt, a leading provider of high-quality lubricants and fuels with a wide network of convenience retail shops and centers, renewed and expanded its collaboration with the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development (SFSD), providing additional support to the “Bab Amal” program. The partnership aims to assist nearly 100 families in Assiut Governorate, with implementation handled by the Giving Without Limits Association. This move reaffirms ExxonMobil Egypt‘s commitment to expanding the positive impact of this successful collaboration on local communities, building on the program’s solid achievements since it started. It also reflects the company’s ongoing dedication to supporting community-driven initiatives that…

This week saw a landmark event for Adnoc Gas expansion plans, with the firm taking FID on the first phase of its $5bn Rich Gas Development (RGD). RGD will increase Adnoc Gas’ processing capacity by 1.5bn cfd, and the firm awarded Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management (EPCM) contracts for work at four sites – Asab, Bu Hasa, Habshan and Das Island. Adnoc Gas currently has more than 10bn cfd processing capacity, and RGD is a core part of plans to increase this to nearly 14bn cfd through the addition of 3.7bn cfd capacity by the end of the decade. Overall,…

Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Karim Badawi attended the “Energy Transition: Eastern Mediterranean and Southeast Europe” Summit, held in the Greek capital Athens on June 17–18, 2025. Badawi participated as a keynote speaker in a panel discussion titled “Achieving Regional Synergy in a Transitional Energy Landscape” along with George Papanastasiou, Cypriot Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry; and Tasos Chatzivasileiou, Greek Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. During the session, Badawi underscored the Egyptian petroleum sector’s commitment to balancing energy security with environmental responsibility. He highlighted their strategic priorities, including boosting regional cooperation and maximizing infrastructure use. A key initiative…