INVESTMENT WATCH- BP pledges to invest USD 1 bn this year as production from Atoll gas field begins seven months ahead of schedule: BP plans to invest USD 1 bn in Egypt this year, BP Group CEO Bob Dudley said on the sidelines of the conference, Reuters reports. The statement comes as BP announced that it has started production at the Atoll Phase One project in the North Damietta concession in the East Nile Delta seven months ahead of schedule and 33% below the initial cost estimate. Atoll is now producing 350 mcf/d and 10,000 bpd of condensate, with the main reservoir in the field containing an estimated 1.5 tcf of gas and 31 mn bbp of condensates. Phase 1 of Atoll, which has seen nearly USD 1 bn in investments, is the first new project to come into production for BP in 2018. “The longstanding partnerships we have in Egypt allowed us to fast-track Atoll’s development and deliver first gas only 33 months after discovery. This is a further demonstration of our commitment to help realize Egypt’s oil and gas potential and meet the increasing demand from its growing population,” Dudley said.

“The government owes us no money,” he added. Egypt, whose arrears to international oil companies had reached USD 2.4 bn as of the end of FY2016-17, has pledged to eliminate arrears owed to foreign oil companies by the end of June 2019 and not to accumulate more.

SOUND SMART: The Oil Ministry doesn’t owe anything to BP and has paid down arrears to other majors, insiders tell us, but it’s squeezing the cash flows of mid-sized producers. They’re the next pressure point in the chain.