Sameh Fahmi

Amin Sameh Samir Fahmi (born 14 August 1949) is an Egyptian engineer and politician who served as oil minister of Egypt for 12 years from 1999 to 2011.

Sameh Fahmi
Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources
In office 5 October 1999 – 21 February 2011
Prime Minister	Atef Ebeid Ahmed Shafik
Preceded by	Hamdi Al Banbi
Succeeded by	Mahmoud Latif Amer
Personal details
Born	14 August 1949 Cairo
Nationality	Egyptian
Political party	National Democratic Party
Alma mater	Cairo University

Early life and education

Fahmi was born in Cairo on 14 August 1949.[1] He has a twin brother, Hadi Fahmi.[1] Sameh Fahmi holds a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering, which he received from Cairo University in June 1973.[1]

Career and activities

After graduation, Fahmi began to work at the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).[1] In May 1993, he became a board member and vice head of the EGPC in charge of planning and projects.[1] In January 1997, he was appointed CEO and vice chairman of the Midor oil refining venture near Alexandria.[1] In 1997, he began to serve as a board member of the Petroleum and Mining Chamber and of the Federation of Egyptian Industries.[1] In August 1998, he was named a board member of the Alexandria Company for Petroleum Maintenance.[1] He joined the National Democratic Party and became a member of its policy secretariat.[2]

Fahmi was appointed oil minister to the cabinet led by the then prime minister Atef Ebeid on 5 October 1999, replacing Hamdi Al Banbi.[1][3] Fahmi was also named the chairman of the Egyptian Gas Holding Company.[4] He was instrumental in the establishment of the Egyptian holding company for petrochemicals (ECHEM) in 2002.[5] A 15-year natural gas deal was signed by him and Israeli national infrastructure minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer in July 2005.[6] In December 2010, he was appointed president of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum.[7] Although he retained his post in the cabinet led by Ahmed Shafik in the January 2011 reshuffle,[8] he resigned from office due to the complaints of oil workers on 16 February 2011.[9] His term ended on 21 February 2011[10][11] and he was replaced by Mahmoud Latif Amer as oil minister.[12][13]

Controversy

After leaving office, Fahmi was investigated because of alleged wrongdoing.[13] In April 2011, it was announced by the public prosecutor that he would be tried in relation to the charges related to a natural gas deal with Israel.[14][15] He was arrested and held in custody on 21 April 2011.[16][17] Fahmi was sentenced to 15 years in prison in June 2012 due to his alleged role in selling and exporting natural gas to Israel in 2005 at lower prices than market rates.[18][19] He along with other officials was also fined about $2.3 billion.[15]

In mid-March 2013, the court of cassation decided that Fahmi should be retried over the Egypt-Israel gas case.[20] On 28 March 2013, he was released from prison since he stayed in prison longer than the maximum 18 months allowed for pre-trial detention.[21] Specifically, he was jailed for 23 months.[20]

References

1. "Profile - Sameh Fahmi - Oil Minister". APS. 26 January 2004. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
2. Gamal Essam El Din (29 September – 5 October 2005). "Reshuffle postponed". Al Ahram Weekly. 762. Archived from the original on 28 May 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2013.
3. "Decision Maker Profile - Dr. Atef Ebeid". APS Review Downstream Trends. 24 January 2000. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
4. El Din, Gamal Essam (22–28 May 2008). "In the dock". Al Ahram Weekly. 898. Archived from the original on 26 March 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
5. Pascal Belda (2005). Ebizguide Egypt. MTH Multimedia S.L. p. 94. ISBN 978-84-933978-0-7. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
6. "Gas Exports to Israel". Al Ahram Weekly. 750. 7–13 July 2005. Archived from the original on 26 March 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
7. "1st Summit of the Forum of Gas Exporting Countries late 2011 in Doha". Ennahar. 3 December 2010. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
8. Alaa Shaahine (31 January 2011). "Egypt Names Radwan Finance Minister in New Cabinet, Replaces Boutros-Ghali". Bloomberg. Retrieved 5 September 2013.
9. "Egypt Oil Minister Sameh Fahmi resigns from office". Egypt News. 16 February 2011. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2013.
10. "Mubarak was sole architect of Israel gas deal: Ex-oil minister's defence". Al Ahram. 30 April 2012. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
11. Tamer Abdel Aziz (March 2011). "How eligible is the new minister?". Egypt Oil & Gas (51): 12–13. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
12. "Sameh Fahmy out of the new cabinet". Egypt Oil & Gas. 21 February 2011. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
13. Shehab, Shaden (10–16 March 2011). "Juggling the possible". Al Ahram Weekly. Archived from the original on 21 January 2012. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
14. El Din, Gamal Essam (23 April 2011). "Egypt's fallen president faces execution or life imprisonment if found guilty". Ahram Online. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
15. Nadeem Hamid; Mariam Fam (21 April 2011). "Egypt's Ex-Oil Minister Jailed for 15 Days, Prosecutor Says". Bloomberg. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
16. Zayed, Dana (22 April 2011). "Egypt detains ex-energy minister over Israel gas deal". Reuters. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
17. "Egypt court jails ex-oil minister for corruption". Reuters. Cairo. 28 June 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
18. Taha, Rana Mohammad (28 June 2012). "Salem and Fahmy imprisoned over Israel gas deal". Daily News Egypt. Retrieved 2 March 2013.
19. "Egyptian oil minister who signed deal with Israel sentenced to 15 years in jail". The Times of Israel. 29 June 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
20. "Mubarak's oil minister freed after 23 months in jail". Ahram Online. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2013.
21. "Egypt ex-oil minister freed on appeal in Israel gas export case". Trend. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2013.