More gas discoveries
A NEW gas discovery was made on Sunday in Egyptian waters at the Nargis-1 exploration well in the eastern Mediterranean, according to the Italian multinational energy company Eni.
The company has been awarded exploration rights in north Rafah, north Al-Fayrouz, northeast Arish, Tiba, and east of Bellatrix-Seti.
Eni said 61 metres of miocene and oligocene gas bearing sandstone were found under 309 metres of water, noting that the proximity of Nargis-1 to the company’s current facilities will allow for further gas discoveries.
In 2015, Eni, which has been operating in Egypt since 1954, discovered the Zohr gas field which allowed Egypt to achieve self-sufficiency in gas and increase its gas export revenues. Egypt also plans to become a major gas supplier to the European continent, especially after the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
From January to October 2022, Egypt’s natural and liquefied gas exports increased to $7.8 billion, ranking Egypt the top gas exporter in the Arab world. Sunday’s discovery was the second in a week.
The German company Wintershall Dea announced last week a gas field discovery in eastern Damanhour, in the onshore Nile Delta.
Shoukri in UAE touts COP27
FOREIGN Minister Sameh Shoukri, president of the COP27 climate change conference held in November 2022 in Sharm El- Sheikh, said COP28 due to be held later this year in the United Arab Emirates will be a chance for building on the success of COP27.
This came during Shoukri’s address to the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) Summit, according to Ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid. Shoukri reviewed the major topics tackled during COP27 which was attended by heads of state of 120 countries who reiterated their support for climate work.
Shoukri said COP27 focused on efforts to ease the effects of climate change and stressed the importance of maintaining the Paris Agreement goals to mitigate the effects of emissions.
Shoukri also underlined that COP27 managed to achieve its goals “in spite of the political and economic challenges that the world is witnessing at present”. He said, according to Abu Zeid, that Egypt is ready to help COP28 to achieve the required targets.
On the sidelines of the ADSW, Shoukri met UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and COP28 president-designate Sultan Al-Jaber and new Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Simon Stiell.
Helping to secure money liquidity
THE NATIONAL Bank of Egypt (NBE) and Banque Misr announced on Monday that they will stop issuing certificates of deposit (CDs) with 25 per cent annual yield before the end of January, as the proceeds have covered the target.
Earlier in January, the two banks started issuing the certificates which are also available with a monthly yield of 22.5 per cent. The certificates aimed to contain rising inflation, the highest in four years, by encouraging savings.
Last week, the banks said that the proceeds of certificate sales reached over LE100 billion less than two weeks after their issuance.
Buying subsidised bread with debit cards
MINISTER of Supply and Internal Trade Ali Moselhi announced that Egyptians who are not enrolled in the ration card system will be allowed to buy 90-gramme loaves of subsidised bread using prepaid debit cards.
Moselhi said citizens will be able to buy 10 or 20 loaves of subsidised bread for a price that has not been decided but added it will be less than the cost of unsubsidised bread.
According to Moselhi, the price will be determined monthly. The ministry will start a trial run for prepaid cards in two or three bakeries later this week. Moselhi stated that the total cost of subsidised bread increased from LE51 billion to LE90 billion due to the devaluation of the Egyptian pound to the US dollar.
Egypt relies heavily on wheat for making bread, consuming almost 100 billion loaves of bread annually, according to previous statements by Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli.
Egypt has been suffering from a wheat shortage since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war as the two countries are Egypt’s main wheat suppliers.
VAT law amended
MINISTER of Finance Mohamed Maait introduced amendments to certain provisions of the value-added tax (VAT) law. Tax on machinery and equipment imported from abroad or purchased from the local market for industrial production will now be suspended for one year. If proven that the equipment is used in industrial purposes, the tax will be dropped.
The aim is to support the industrial sector, boost economic growth and take into consideration social factors amid current world economic challenges.
To encourage investments, the amendments stipulate that goods or services imported for economic zone projects of a special nature will be subject to tax at zero rates. And to encourage tourists to purchase Egyptian products, the new regulations state that foreigners whose stay in Egypt does not exceed three months will have the right to refund the VAT value they paid to the registered seller for purchases of taxable goods, provided that the purchases in one invoice are not less than LE1,500.
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