Saudi Aramco has agreed to extend its oil supply agreement with Egypt to supply the North African country’s refiners with crude for six more months, Cairo’s Petroleum Minister Tarek El-Molla has said.

Aramco is already supplying crude to Egypt since January as part of the supply deal.

The Saudi oil giant will continue shipping cargoes containing 500,000 to 1 million barrels a month from July until the end of the year.

Egypt’s refineries previously received crude oil from the Saudi oil producer in November and December last year.

Cairo has also renewed a deal with Iraq to buy 12 million barrels of crude for a year.

Once a key exporter of oil, Egypt now relies on imports of crude to fuel its economy.

The licensing round of 11 oil exploration blocks launched by the state-run Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation on 21 May however presents a scenario of international upstream players discovering recoverable crude reserves that could help Egypt meet oil demand and end reliance on imports.