Egypt has set a new international tender for oil and gas exploration rights in the Nile Delta and Mediterranean sea, the petroleum minister announced on Tuesday. Tarek El-Molla said the tender was set for 12 blocks, split evenly between onshore and offshore. According to the Egyptian digital portal for exploration and production, the deadline for offers in the bid round was set for April 30, 2023. The portal, which was created by the ministry in 2021 to attract investments for research and exploration, provides basic information about the proposed bid, in addition to the basic terms and conditions, agreement form, and procedures for joining the tender. The bid, put forward by the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), comes as part of the petroleum ministry’s strategy to attract more investments to explore gas and oil in promising areas, Molla said in a statement. “The strategy provides opportunities to attract investments by new international companies, in addition to encouraging operating companies to increase their investments and expand their areas of operation.” Molla pointed out that the efforts serve Cairo’s goal to intensify research and exploration activities for its natural gas resources in the Mediterranean, in light of the intensive efforts by other Mediterranean countries to increase gas discoveries and production. The minister added that the tender is the third launched through the Egyptian digital portal for exploration and production. The petroleum minister announced in mid-December the discovery of a large gas field in the Nargis block in the eastern Mediterranean. The Middle East Economic Survey reported that the size of the new well was 3.5 trillion cubic feet of gas. The find could provide a boost to Egypt's efforts to position itself as an energy hub in the eastern Mediterranean following the 2015 announcement of the discovery by Eni of the giant Zohr gas field.