Egypt’s petroleum minister opens Cairo’s first integrated station serving cars with natural gas, gasoline, electric charging
Source：Ahram Online
From：Taiwan Trade Center, Cairo
Update Time：2021/07/24
Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum Tarek El-Molla inaugurated Cairo’s first integrated station in the Abbasiya district that serves vehicles running on natural gas, gasoline and electric charging.
The fuel station is operated by state-owned natural gas company, GASTECH, and Italy’s oil industry company, ENI.
El-Molla stated the fuel station is part of a national plan to expand the use of natural gas as a cost-effective transportation fuel in the country, which comes in line with the presidential initiative to provide quality service for citizens and alleviate their financial burdens, a statement by the ministry said.
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has directed the expansion of natural gas stations in all cities, roads and main axes to facilitate and encourage citizens to use it,
In implementing the president’s initiative, the petroleum sector has succeeded in doubling the number of natural gas fueling stations to 375 nationwide, up from 180 less than a year ago.
The aim is to inaugurate an unprecedented number of these stations, 400 during the coming period, eventually reaching 1,000 across all governorates, El-Molla revealed.
Egypt has recently begun supporting the adoption of environmentally friendly cars, launching the three-year Go Green Initiative in January – open for taxi and private-car owners across seven governorates – which aims to replace 70,000 private cars with hybrids in the first year, and 90,000 in each the second and third years.
With more than 1.3 million cars over 20-years-old still running in Egypt, the Go Green Initiative aims to help decrease harmful emissions and protect the environment by upgrading transportation, easing the burden on the state by reducing fuel imports, and taking advantage of natural-gas reserves after new discoveries.
El-Molla also stressed that the Italian company Eni – one of the largest companies working in the exploration and production of oil and gas – is an important strategic partner for Egypt, and that its investment in fuel distribution for the local market and the establishment of integrated stations confirms its willingness to develop a partnership that has existed since the 1950s.
Among the major gas fields Eni, which has been working in Egypt since 1954, is working on is the offshore Zohr gas field, which was discovered in 2015 and is believed to be the largest-ever gas discovery in Egypt and the Mediterranean.
Zohr’s daily production exceeded three billion cubic feet in 2020, representing 40 percent of Egypt’s total gas output, according to previous statements by El-Molla.
The deep water gas field is estimated to contain up to 30 trillion cubic feet.
Source: https://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/3/12/416927/Business/Economy/Egypt%E2%80%99s-petroleum-minister-opens-Cairo%E2%80%99s-first-int.aspx