Egypt's Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El Molla said that over the past five years, his country’s oil and gas sector has for the first time managed to hit the highest investment rate in the hat $30 billion.

Molla explained that this achievement is a result of the improved investment environment and the restoration of foreign investors' confidence.

His remarks were made during his speech 10th Mediterranean Offshore Conference and Exhibition (MOC 2019), which is held this year under the slogan, “Connecting the Two Shores of the Mediterranean.”

The Minister pointed out that the sector has achieved a record of the highest rate of crude oil and gas production in the history of Egypt in August, amounting to 1.9 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, in addition to achieving self-sufficiency of natural gas in September 2018.

He noted that it also achieved the highest rate of natural gas delivery to 1.2 million housing units in 2018 alone.

It also enhanced its infrastructure through projects to develop and increase the capacity of refineries and transmission lines and distribution of gas and petroleum products and inaugurated two large petrochemical complexes.

Innocenzo Titone, president of the conference held in Ravenna, Italy, said that the Eastern Mediterranean region has become one of the most significant areas of gas production in light of the discoveries made in Egypt and a number of countries there.

He pointed to Egypt’s discovery of Zohr oil field alongside other discoveries to meet the domestic demand and return to being a gas exporting country, which qualifies it to be a regional hub for trading in oil and gas.

Shell’s Vice Executive President Upstream Joint Ventures Gerald Schotman, for his part, said that the growth of natural gas production in maritime areas in Egypt plays a crucial role in the renaissance of gas.

“It led Egypt to stop importing natural gas, resume liquefied natural gas exports and support the government's ambition to transform the country into a regional energy hub,” Schotman explained.