The Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and Schlumberger have launched the Egypt Upstream Gateway, an innovative national project for the digitalisation of subsurface information
This digital platform will also enable global access to the country's subsurface data, which is kept evergreen by enhancing legacy datasets through reprocessing and new studies. This unique digital initiative will be used to unlock the potential of Egypt's petroleum sector and promote the country's exploration and production potential worldwide.
Speaking at the launch event in Cairo on 17 February, which also saw the announcement on the digital platform of the country’s latest international bidding round, HE Tarek El-Molla, Egypt’s minister of petroleum and mineral resources, highlighted the importance of digitalisation as a ‘pivotal enabler’ and a key element in the modernisation programme for the country’s oil and gas sector.
“Digital transformation is playing a significant role in driving efficiencies at both a strategic and operational level in oil and gas, and becoming a critical factor for success in the post-pandemic period,” said El-Molla. “As the oil and gas industry is Egypt grows, there will be a great opportunity to leverage big data, the use of data science and new and emerging technologies that will accelerate opportunities, through generating more efficient workflows and achieving significant reductions in operating costs.
“The Egypt Upstream Gateway is a unique and innovative national project that significantly enhances the national data repository solution by digitalising all subsurface information and putting data at your fingertips to be accessed at anytime from anywhere,” he said. “The Egypt Upstream Gateway will digitally promote Egypt’s oil and gas bid rounds through seamless online access to the sector’s data, as well as endorsing our exploration potential worldwide.
“Understanding and leveraging the value of data in the upstream sector will be a key enabler for oil sector companies to remain competitive throughout planning, appraisal and field development,” he went on. “Current and potential investors will benefit with advanced data visualisation and technology, and greater access to regional geological and geophysical insights The EUG is a defining milestone in the country’s oil and gas digital transformation.”
The Minister added that more than 10 international companies had already signed membership agreements even before the official launch of the platform.
"The Egypt Upstream Gateway is the embodiment of the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum's vision, leveraging digitisation to modernise the country's petroleum sector," said Rajeev Sonthalia, president, digital and integration, Schlumberger. "With the launch of this industry-first platform, the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and its affiliates—EGPC, EGAS, GANOPE—can digitally showcase national assets to investors worldwide, in addition to leveraging the latest digital technology and solutions to accelerate discovery throughout the country."
The Egypt Upstream Gateway provides digital access to over 100 years' worth of accumulated national onshore and offshore seismic, non-seismic, well-log, production, and additional subsurface data under a single platform. This data, which empowers de-risked decisions through the ability to explore multiple basins and evergreen data, can be accessed virtually from anywhere using the platform’s online portal.
At the event, Egypt’s first digital international bid round was launched through the EUG. 24 blocks are being offered by EGPC and EGAS in the Gulf of Suez, Western Desert, Eastern Desert and the Mediterranean Sea, using the PDSA model which applies in Egypt.
