Egypt is studying the possibility of selling shares in eight government-owned petroleum firms to the public.

Egypt’s Ministry of Investment will assess the suitability of the eight companies for a possible listing on the Egyptian Stock Exchange, new agency Reuters has cited Petroleum Minister Tarek El-Molla as saying.

“We sent the names of eight petroleum companies to the Ministry of Investment last week to be studied, paving the way to issuing some of their shares on the bourse or increasing their capital,” El-Molla said.

Among the entities being studied for public offerings are Middle East Oil Refinery (Midor) and the Egyptian Ethylene and Derivatives Company (Ethudco), while authorities are contemplating capital increases for Alexandria Mineral Oils Company (Amco), Misr Fertilizers Production Company (Mopco) and also for Midor, the minister said. He did not disclose the names of the remaining companies or the value and date of any of the planned IPOs.

The Egyptian presidency announced in January that Egypt would soon offer shares of “successful” state-owned companies and banks on the local bourse in what would be the first public offering of state-owned companies since 2005, when Telecom Egypt and Sidi Kerir were launched.

The Egyptian government owns a large number of operating companies in various industries, including The Arab Contractors, Hassan Allam Holding, Engineering for the Petroleum and Process Industries (ENPPI), Midor, and Misr Insurance Company as well as several banks.

Some 270 companies are listed on the Egyptian stock market and the number of active investors is between 80,000 and 100,000, according to the news agency.

The Egyptian government lately focused attention on developing country’s oil and gas sector to acquire sustained and reliable sources of energy to kick-start stuttering economic growth in the most heavily populated Arab country.

El-Molla on 1 August said that Ganoub El-Wadi Petroleum Holding Company (Ganope), a government-controlled energy firm in Egypt, had issued a new international tender for oil and gas drilling and explorations in Gulf of Suez and Sinai.

The tender includes areas of West Gabal El Zeit, South East Ghara, and South Sinai, in addition to another five areas in Egyptian Western Desert.

This is the second tender issued in Egypt’s energy sector this year to attract new global investments, with a particular focus on oil and gas drilling and explorations, he added.