The Egyptian unit of Abu Dhabi-listed Dana Gas said on Wednesday it is in advanced negotiations with Egypt to build a 'gas city' that will attract over $20 billion in investments over the long term.

'Gas cities' are large, gas-fed industrial complexes housing petrochemical and heavy manufacturing plants.

'We are in advanced stages of discussion with the government to build a gas city in Egypt,' the firm's president Hany Elsharkawi told Reuters on the sidelines of the Intergas V conference in Cairo.

'Dana Gas will just create the nucleus of the city, and then other investment will be built around it. This is not a one- to two-year project, it is more a 20- to 25-year project,' he added.

'(Total) investment will be worth of $20 billion,' said Elsharkawi. 'The gas city would be a medium-sized complex, and that the location had not been decided yet.'

Dana Gas and the UAE's Crescent Petroleum are planning to set up at least four gas cities in the Middle East and North Africa region as they seek to tap growing demand for hydrocarbons.

The companies said they were looking to invest several billion dollars in the infrastructure of those cities and attract tens of billions of dollars in investments.-Reuters