Mineral gas production is of relatively recent origin in Egypt. Since the
second half of the 1980s production figures have been rising fast. Production
takes place mainly in the northern Nile delta at Abu Madi and at Balteem,
and offshore near Abu Qir, Rosetta and Dumyat, as well as in the oil fields
near Port Fouad and At-Timsah. There are strong hopes in Egypt for a last-
ing peace with its eastern neighbours, so that in future gas can be exported
through a pipeline to Israel, Palestine and Syria. In 2001, before the escalation
of the war in Palestine and the events of 11 September, Egypt, Jordan, Syria
and Lebanon signed an agreement to transfer Egyptian gas from Al-Arish on
the Mediterranean coast to Aqaba and later to Syria and Lebanon (Internet
2001k). In 1994 gas accounted for 80 per cent of electricity production in
Egypt and 95 per cent of the energy used for the production of fertilizers,
while in 2000 it accounted for 35 per cent of the total energy consumed in
Egypt (A. Ibrahim 2001).