The Covid-19 pandemic is impacting Egypt’s downstream expansion plans, with the outlook for a key expansion project thrown into uncertainty by the virus. Egypt has successfully expanded and upgraded its refining sector over the past year, but eyes further gains in a bid to reduce the need for products imports.

Work on the 60,000 b/d expansion of Egypt’s state-owned Midor refinery is slated to be completed in mid-2022, but the contractor and subcontractor have now declared force majeure. Midor’s Q2 newsletter released this week confirmed the decision, adding that while the expansion was 33.78% complete as of end-June, the “project is facing obstacles due to Covid-19.” (CONTINUED - 593 WORDS)