Hi Egypt's gas exports fall 81.4% in September.

Hi Egypt's gas exports fall 81.4% in September.

- "Natural gas exports continue to drop as more production is used to meet Egypt's rising electricity demands."

Egypt's exports of natural gas in September declined 81.4 percent compared to the same period last year, the state-run Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC) reported on Thursday.

The value of exports totalled $18.1 million, compared to $97.1 million in September 2013.

Meanwhile, natural gas production fell 12.2 percent lower than its September 2013 level, totalling 3.01 million tonnes of natural gas, compared to 3.4 million in the same month of the previous year.

Electric power generation accounted for some 68.7 percent of natural gas consumption, up from 59.6 percent a year before, reflecting Egypt's efforts to meet rising domestic demands for electricity.

"There have been no new concessions in the period from 2010 to 2013, which resulted in decreasing exploration areas to only 27 blocks during 2013, down from 53 in 2010," the minister of petroleum, Sherif Ismail, said earlier this week.

Delays in explorations are a result of mounting debts to foreign oil and gas companies following the 2011 uprising that toppled president Hosni Mubarak.

Gas producers currently receive about $2.65 per 1,000 cubic feet, far below the prices paid in the North Sea and elsewhere, reported Reuters last month. But Ismail said this week that the ministry plans to free prices in one of several attempts to encourage explorations.

Exports of crude oil and other petroleum products were valued at $321 million, down 20 percent from $401 million in September 2013.

Meanwhile, domestic consumption of petroleum products rose 26.1 percent year-on-year to 3.2 million tonnes.

The United Arab Emirates pledged $9 billion worth of petroleum products starting in September, to be sent over a year.

Egypt's production of Brent crude and petroleum condensates, such as gas oil and naphtha, dipped by 1.5 percent year-on-year in September to reach 2.9 million tonnes, according to the IDSC.

Hi Egypt says to repay debts to foreign oil companies within six months.

Hi Egypt says to repay debts to foreign oil companies within six months.

By Ehab Farouk and Lin Noueihed:

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt plans to repay all of its $4.9 billion debt to foreign oil and gas companies within six months, the oil ministry said on Thursday, a move it hopes will prompt them to boost exploration and ease the worst energy crunch in decades.

Egypt has delayed payments to oil and gas firms as its economy has been hammered by almost three years of instability since a popular uprising ousted autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

Arrears began to accumulate before the revolt, but worsening state finances saw the debts mount to billions of dollars while the government diverted gas earmarked for export to meet domestic demand.

Gas production has steadily declined in Egypt while consumption keeps rising, but firms have been reluctant to increase investment in exploration and production, particularly in costly offshore areas, until the government repays them.

The ministry said in a statement that Egypt planned to borrow $2 billion to help it finance the repayments, seeking to repay 60 percent of the arrears by year-end.

"This offering comes as one of the short-term measures taken by the government to pay the (international oil companies') arrears," Oil Minister Sherif Ismail said in the statement.

He said state oil and gas boards EGPC and EGAS were holding further talks with the companies, in parallel with repayments, to "manage their expectations".

Egypt said in October it had repaid $1.5 billion of the money owed, leaving $4.9 billion outstanding.

But Dana Gas <DANA.AD> said on Wednesday it understood that about half that amount had been repaid, with $700 million more due by year-end.

It expects to get some of that cash and also plans to invest more than $350 million in Egypt over the next few years to drill new wells and redevelop existing wells.

BG Group's <BG.L> earnings have been hit hard by the turmoil as its production and exports of liquefied natural gas from Egypt have been disrupted.

"The Egyptians have paid a big tranche in September and have promised to repay more within a few months, but they have made similar promises in the past and we will have to wait till we see the money," a senior source at BG said.

The gas shortage has left the Arab world's most populous country struggling with blackouts that became almost daily over the summer. The government has also diverted gas away from heavy industries, hitting companies' performance.

Egypt began cutting subsidies on fuel and electricity in July as part of economic reforms aimed at curtailing its budget deficit and curbing growth in energy consumption.

(Additional reporting by Ron Bousso and Karolin Schaps in London and Matt Smith in Dubai; Editing by David Goodman and Susan Fenton).