French oil company Total has been awarded a licence to explore for natural gas in the Nile Delta, a source in the state-run Egyptian Natural Gas Holding company (Egas) said on Monday.

"France's Total won the bid to explore in Sector 2 in the Delta region," the source told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) and Egas announced an international tender for oil and gas drilling concessions last December.-Reuters