Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Karim Badawi, inspected drilling operations at Shell’s Velox-1X exploration well in the Mediterranean Sea on Saturday, describing the project as a strategic step towards unlocking new gas resources and boosting the country’s natural gas production.
During a visit aboard the drilling vessel Stena IceMAX, Badawi reviewed progress on the well, which is being drilled in the North Cleopatra concession in the Herodotus Basin by Shell in partnership with Chevron, Tharwa Petroleum and QatarEnergy.
The minister said Velox-1X is being drilled to a target depth of around 6,000 metres, making it the deepest offshore exploration well in the region and underscoring the advanced technologies being deployed in Egypt’s offshore exploration programme.
He added that the well, located in a frontier area that has never been explored before, is expected to provide valuable geological data that could unlock new exploration opportunities, attract further investment in gas exploration and increase the prospects for new discoveries.
Badawi also praised Shell’s commitment to its ambitious drilling programme in Egypt in 2026, noting that Velox-1X is the fourth well in the campaign launched earlier this year. He said co-operation between Shell, the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources and the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) had enabled the adoption of an integrated operating model that reduced drilling costs through the application of international best practices, improving both operational efficiency and the economics of exploration projects.
The minister also reviewed progress under Shell’s wider drilling programme, including the successful drilling and completion of the Mina West-1 and Mina West-2 wells as part of the West Mina field development project in the North East El-Amriya concession, in partnership with Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC). Production from the field is scheduled to begin by the end of 2026 following encouraging well test results.
