Eni Begins Commissioning of Meleiha Phase 2 With Gas Processing Capacity of 100 Million Cubic Feet a Day
Key Facts
Eni has begun commissioning activities at the Meleiha Phase 2 project in Egypt's Western Desert, according to a company statement, as part of the development of the gas hub in the merged Meleiha concession. The new facility has a maximum design capacity of 100 million standard cubic feet of gas a day. The company said the project would help increase natural gas availability "for the domestic market," specifying the intended destination of supplies. Eni had included Meleiha Phase 2 among its planned project start-ups and production increases for 2026 in its capital markets presentation. Commissioning activities began after Egypt's petroleum ministry said work on the Meleiha plant was nearing completion ahead of its start-up.
The project's infrastructure includes development wells and gas gathering systems, according to Eni's statement on the new phase. It also includes trunk pipelines as part of the concession's gas hub development. The announcement of the agreement to merge the Meleiha and Meleiha Deep concessions had provided for the construction of a new gas processing plant and its connection to the Western Desert Gas Complex in Alexandria. The concession is operated by Agiba, a joint venture between Eni and the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation. Ownership of the operating company is split equally, with 50% held by the Egyptian corporation and 50% by Eni, according to the company's statement on the concession agreement.
The agreement to merge Meleiha and Meleiha Deep provided for the extension of the concessions to 2036, with the possibility of a further extension to 2041. Eni had previously announced discoveries in Meleiha and Southwest Meleiha, estimating their hydrocarbon resources in place at about 50 million barrels of oil equivalent. The company described those estimates as preliminary when it announced the discoveries. In another announcement on the Meleiha concession, Eni said oil and gas discoveries had added about 8,500 barrels of oil equivalent to daily production. Those additions included production from discoveries in Egypt's Western Desert, where Phase 2 of the Meleiha project is being developed.
Also in the Western Desert, Egypt's petroleum ministry announced preliminary reserve estimates for the South Bostan discovery, covering gas, condensates and crude oil. The ministry estimated gas reserves at about 330 billion cubic feet. Its estimate for condensates and crude oil was about 10 million barrels, as part of the preliminary assessment of the discovery. South Bostan lies 10 kilometres from existing facilities, according to the ministry's statement on the discovery. The ministry said its proximity to those facilities would allow rapid development and connection to the production network, making use of existing infrastructure in the area.
The petroleum ministry's review of Eni's projects extended to the development of Mediterranean gas fields, alongside the Meleiha plant in the Western Desert. During the talks, the petroleum minister stressed the need to accelerate development of the Denise field to bring it into production, according to a ministry statement. Eni says the Denise West discovery is located in the Temsah concession, less than 10 kilometres from existing infrastructure. The talks also covered progress on Cyprus's Cronos project and plans to connect it to Egyptian infrastructure. In its update on the project, the ministry linked implementation of the connection plans to a final investment decision by the partners.
Eni's operations in Egypt date back to 1954, according to the company's overview of its business in the country. Hydrocarbon production attributable to its stake in Egypt stood at about 242 thousand barrels of oil equivalent a day in 2025. This figure covers hydrocarbon production on an equity basis, as stated in its announcement on the start of commissioning activities at Meleiha Phase 2. On its financial calendar, Eni plans to announce its third-quarter 2026 results during October. The company has set 23 October 2026 for publication of the results statement and its earnings conference call, according to its financial calendar.