Egypt's parliament ratified on Monday 14 agreements with a total value of 957 million US dollars between the government and foreign oil companies, the official MENA news agency reported.

The agreements will license foreign oil companies' exploration and exploitation of oil in the country's 25,000 square km of land.

Approval of the agreements paved the way for foreign oil companies' entry into Egypt's petroleum sector, Egyptian Minister of Petroleum Sameh Fahmy said on Monday.

Egypt has an oil reserve of 15 billion barrels and gas of 67 trillion cubic feet, Fahmy said in March.

Source: Xinhua