The Italian Edison Gas has concluded the drilling of a new exploratory well last April, located in the Wadi El-Rayan concession in the Western Desert. The operation comes in the context of the company’s 2011-2012 drilling plan.

The new RAYAN 2X-A is an oil-producing well. It was drilled using the EDC-67 rig to the depth of 4,400 feet, attracting $2.393 million in drilling investments. Edison has temporarily plugged the well until further appraisal.

Edison operates in Egypt through Abu Qir Petroleum, a jointly owned company in conjunction with Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), each owning 50%.

Abu Qir’s production rates during the month April of 2012 stood at 175,546 barrels of condensate and 1,432,041barrels of oil equivalent of natural gas.