Shell's Velox-1X exploratory well off Egypt has turned up oil indicators, raising the prospect of the Western Mediterranean's first crude oil discovery. The well sits in the North Cleopatra concession, drilled to a final depth of 6,500 meters in 2,800 meters of water, the deepest water depth ever drilled in the Mediterranean.
Shell operates the well with Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), alongside Chevron and Tharwa Petroleum. QatarEnergy is in the process of joining the partnership.
The company used the Stena IceMAX drillship to spud the well on 23 May 2026 and reached its geological targets 10 days ahead of schedule and below budget. The well sits roughly 90 km off Egypt's coast. Crews recovered a crude oil sample, and technical data including electrical logging results are under review to determine next steps, which may include further appraisal or exploration wells.
A frontier basin
The Western Mediterranean covers about 40% of the Mediterranean Sea's total area but has drawn only four exploratory wells to date. The Eastern Mediterranean, by contrast, has seen more than 1,000. Egypt's petroleum sector has pushed reforms to attract upstream investment, including settling outstanding dues to partners and running 2D and 3D seismic surveys in the area.
