Total says Lebanon offshore drilling halfway done - LEBANESE OIL & GAS INITIATIVE (LOGI)

MAR/30/2020

Timour Azhari

Lebanon’s first-ever offshore exploratory drill is roughly halfway complete in Block 4 off the coast of Beirut, according to the General Manager of Total E&P Lebanon, Ricardo Darre.

Speaking to LOGI on March 23, Darree said that the drilling was ongoing at a depth of about 3000 meters and would take a total of about 60 days. Then, he said the same amount of time should be given for analysis of the find to determine its commercial viability.

Lebanon to start oil and gas exploration in Block 9 despite dispute with Israel - XINHUA

Xinhua, March 7, 2020

BEIRUT, March 7 (Xinhua) -- Walid Nasr, head of the Lebanese Petroleum Administration, said Lebanon will start in 2020 oil and gas exploration in Block 9 of its territorial waters regardless of the negotiations with Israel about border demarcation, local media reported on Saturday.

"We will prepare for oil and gas exploration in Block 9 this year and we will be drilling at a distance from the borders with Israel," Nasr said in an interview with Elnashra, an online independent newspaper.

Nasr said that it is currently hard to assess if Lebanon has a wealth of oil and gas and companies may not find any resources in the well that's currently being drilled by Total in Block 4.

"Sometimes we need to drill five wells to find oil and gas," Nasr explained.

Drillship off Lebanon to start oil and gas exploration - FRANCE24

25/FEB/2020 - 17:57
Beirut (AFP)

A drillship anchored off Lebanon Tuesday to explore for oil and gas, an energy firm and the government said, raising hopes for a future boost to the country's crumbling economy.

Information Minister Manal Abdel Samad said the first ever such exploration would start within 48 hours.

The Tungsten Explorer was to start drilling in its first exploration well situated some 30 kilometres (16 nautical miles) offshore from Beirut, French oil firm Total said.

"Total is pleased to start exploration operations on block 4, which is the first deepwater exploration well in Lebanon," Total's Lebanon chief Ricardo Darre said.

Anticipation has been high in Lebanon for exploration to start, with many hoping a major hydrocarbon discovery could help redress the debt-burdened economy.

Energy Minister Raymond Ghajar said on Twitter the ship had anchored in block 4.

Total: 20-25% chance of success on Lebanon first exploratory well - LEBANON GAS NEWS

03.SEPT.2019

Total is the lead company in a consortium that won contracts in 2017 to explore for oil and gas in Lebanon’s maritime block’s 4 and 9. The other two companies are ENI and Novatek.

The consortium is contractually obliged to drill a minimum of two exploratory wells per block, starting with Block 4, where the first drill location has been set off the coast of Beirut.

What are the chances of drilling before the end of 2019?

US-mediated talks between Lebanon and Israel expected to begin in weeks - THE ARAB WEEKELY

Sunday 23/06/2019

Simon Speakman Cordall

TUNIS - Lebanon has agreed to enter US-brokered talks with Israel over a disputed maritime border.

Lebanon has not commented publicly on its participation in such talks; however, Israeli sources indicated that negotiations could begin in July. It is understood that discussions would concern only the maritime border.

Acting US Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Satterfield has been shuttling between both countries’ capitals for months and is believed to have achieved a breakthrough after meeting with Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil in late May.

A statement, carried by Lebanese state media following a recent Satterfield meeting in Lebanon, said the Foreign Ministry confirmed that no major obstacles remained ahead of negotiations but that more trips were required.

“We started putting the final touches on the form of negotiations and the role of the concerned parties, including the United Nations, Lebanon and Israel, as well as the role of the United States,” the statement said.

Israel’s discovery of the Tamar and Leviathan gas fields in 2009 and 2010, respectively, increased the rate of exploration across the eastern Mediterranean, with discoveries later made in Cypriot and Egyptian waters.

Block 4 offshore drilling to start in December: Total report - LEBANON GAS NEWS / DAILY STAR

13 MAY 2019

Drilling the first exploration well in Lebanon’s offshore Block 4 is planned to start in December 2019 and Block 9 in December 2020, according to a report by French oil and gas company Total.

In April, Energy Minister Nada Boustani had announced the site in Block 4 where the first drilling would take place in Lebanon’s bid to discover offshore oil and gas resources in its territories.

The site sits just north of Beirut.

“A mobile offshore drilling unit will be mobilized to Block 4 and the exploration well(s) will be drilled vertically in [an] area … where depths range from 1,450 meters to 1,760 meters,” Total’s report said.

The target gas reservoir’s drilling operations will be supported by a logistics base in Beirut Port.

Block 4 will see the drilling of one exploration well, and possibly a second one. A potential appraisal well will also be drilled, “depending upon the results of the previous exploration wells,” the report said.

Lebanon’s second licensing round: Lessons learned and the case for stability - MIDDLE EAST STRATEGIC PERSPECTIVES / EXECUTIVE MAGAZINE

September 12, 2018

Preparations for the launching of Lebanon’s second offshore licensing round have begun. The Lebanese Petroleum Administration has published a tentative timeline for the tender, which will be officially launched by the end of 2018. The process, including the pre-qualification phase, will extend over a period of one year.

Israel offers Lebanon resolution to border dispute - INTERFAX

 7 June 2018

Israel made a proposal to Lebanon offering a resolution of a long-standing border dispute between the two countries, according to Lebanon’s Speaker Nabih Berri in a report published by Hezbollah’s Al-Manar news service.

The proposal covers onshore and offshore territory.

Total, Eni and Novatek hold a licence to explore Lebanon’s Block 9, part of which crosses the disputed area.

Israel’s proposal was delivered to Lebanon by a US delegation last week, said Berri.

New proposals may help resolve Israel/Lebanon oil and gas dispute - REUTERS

JUNE 5, 2018 / 10:46 AM
Ari Rabinovitch

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - New ideas proposed in U.S. back-channel mediation of an Israeli-Lebanese maritime dispute over oil and gas exploration in the eastern Mediterranean raise the prospect of a partial deal this year, Israel’s energy minister said.

Israel kicked off a gas bonanza in the eastern Mediterranean almost a decade ago with the discovery of two huge gas fields. Others were found in Egypt and Cyprus, and companies are now exploring Lebanese waters as well.

One of the Lebanese blocks being explored, Block 9, borders Israel’s maritime zone and contains waters claimed by both countries. The disputed border also touches two other not-yet-licensed Lebanese blocks.

This has led to years of brinkmanship with officials on both sides promising to protect their resources and warning about encroachment.

“There are some new ideas on the table. More than that I cannot discuss,” Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, said in a Reuters interview. He oversees energy exploration in Israel and is the pointman in indirect negotiations with Lebanon.

Troubled waters ahead in Israel-Lebanon border dispute - PETROLEUM ECONOMIST

8 March 2018Gerald Butt

A maritime border dispute between Israel and Lebanon, and a plan by IOCs to start drilling close to the contested area, are contributing to regional tensions

When a Total-led consortium signed two exploration and production agreements in Beirut in February, the Lebanese government made no attempt to hide its delight.

"Today, we announce that we have started our petroleum path," energy minister Cesar Abi Khalil said. After years of delay caused by internal political crises and sectarian squabbling, Lebanon had finally nailed down contracts that would lead to the start of drilling for oil and gas.

The winning consortium consists of Total (with a 40% stake), Eni (40%) and Novatek (20%). The awarded blocks are 4 and 9. The group has committed itself to drill at least one well in each block in the first three years, starting probably in 2019.

Total strengthens its position in the Mediterranean region by entering two exploration blocks offshore Lebanon - TOTAL

2018/02/09
TOTAL Press release

Paris - Total-led international consortium (Total 40%, ENI 40%, Novatek 20%) and the government of Lebanon have signed two Exploration and Production Agreements covering Blocks 4 and 9 located offshore Lebanon, in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. These agreements provide for the drilling of at least one well per block in the first three years.

“An established player in Lebanon’s marketing sector, Total is delighted to expand its presence in the country to the exploration & production segment. These agreements are part of the Group’s exploration strategy in the Mediterranean region”, stated Stéphane Michel, Senior Vice President Middle East/ North Africa, Exploration & Production at Total.

The consortium's priority will be to drill a first exploration well on Block 4 in 2019.

Israel says seeks diplomatic solution to Med gas spat with Lebanon - REUTERS

FEBRUARY 7, 2018 / 4:14 PM
Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Alison Williams

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel seeks a foreign-mediated diplomatic resolution with Lebanon over a disputed Mediterranean gas field, the Israeli energy minister said on Wednesday after a surge in hostile rhetoric between the enemy countries.

“We hope for, and are prepared to move forward on, a diplomatic resolution to this matter,” Yuval Steinitz told the Ynet news site when asked about the Block 9 field, for which Lebanon has issued an oil and gas exploration tender, drawing condemnation from Israel’s defense minister last week.

Lebanon’s oil and gas sector: A roadmap for 2018 - MESP / EXECUTIVE MAGAZINE

February 6, 2018 / Lebanon

At the end of January, Lebanon signed its first exploration & production agreements (EPA) with a consortium of companies composed of France’s Total (as operator), Italy’s Eni, and Russia’s Novatek. The consortium had placed two separate bids on October 12, 2017, the only ones received in Lebanon’s first offshore licensing round, for Block 4 and Block 9. With the contracts signed, Lebanon can now look forward to the exploration phase. The consortium has committed to drill two wells in 2019, one in each block. But what can Lebanon expect prior to drilling?

Israeli Minister Says Lebanese Claim On Gas Field 'Provocative' - REUTERS

Wednesday, January 31, 2018

TEL AVIV, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Israel described as "very provocative" on Wednesday a Lebanese offshore oil and gas exploration tender on the countries' maritime border, and urged international firms not to bid.

"When they issue a tender on a gas field, including Block 9, which by any standard is ours ... this is very, very challenging and provocative conduct here," Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said.

"Respectable firms" bidding on the tender "are, to my mind, making a grave error - because this is contrary to all of the rules and all protocol in cases like this," he told an international security conference hosted by Tel Aviv University's INSS think-tank.

Lebanon in December approved a bid by a consortium of France's Total, Italy's ENI and Russia's Novatek for two of the five blocks put up for tender in the country's much-delayed first oil and gas offshore licensing round.

Lebanon approves offshore awards for two blocks - OIL & GAS JOURNAL

HOUSTON, DEC/19/2017
Tayvis Dunnahoe

Lebanon’s Cabinet has approved the recently awarded licenses for Blocks 4 and 9 that lie in northern and southern areas offshore (OGJ Online, Oct. 23, 2017). Energy Minister Cesar Abi Khalil was quoted in The Daily Star saying drilling could begin as early as 2019.

Three companies are included in the consortium exploring both blocks: Total SA, Eni SPA, and OAO Novatek. Lebanon’s offshore is prospective for oil and gas, but the future of its development remains unknown (OGJ Online, July 7, 2017). Despite the announcement, the energy ministry has not released technical details of contracts nor has it disclosed the amount of the bids.

Total, Eni, Novatek win first Lebanon offshore licenses - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

DEC/14/2017DANA KHRAICHE

BEIRUT (Bloomberg) -- Lebanon granted its first offshore energy rights to a group comprising Total SA, Eni SpA and Novatek PJSC, joining a regional race to find and develop oil and natural gas wealth in the eastern Mediterranean after years of delay.

The cabinet awarded two licenses in its first offshore bidding round, allowing the companies to jointly explore Blocks 4 and 9, Wissam Chbat, a member of the Lebanese Petroleum Administration, said Thursday by phone. The group has one month to prepare legal, administrative and technical paperwork before signing production-sharing contracts with the government in January, Chbat said. Drilling is expected to begin in 2019, he said.

France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Russia’s Novatek filed their bids to explore the two blocks in October -- the only proposals the government received. The licensing round has encountered setbacks since 2013 amid political disputes over block delineation and government paralysis, leaving Lebanon trailing Cyprus, Egypt and Israel in exploring the eastern Mediterranean. This year bidding was pushed back to give companies more time to understand a new tax law.

Two Oil Majors Submitted their Bid for the Lebanese Licensing Round - LEBANON GAS NEWS

13.10.2017

Total and ENI along with Novatek submitted in one consortium their bid in the First Lebanese Licensing Round.

The consortium submit its bid on two offshore blocks, 4 and 9.

Lebanon relaunched the licensing round for five offshore blocks (1, 4, 8, 9 and 10) in January after a three-year delay due to political paralysis.

The single bid is presently under evaluation by the Lebanese Petroleum administration, which will send its recommendation to the minister of energy Eng. Cesar Abi Khalil. The minister on its turn will relay it to the council of ministers for final approval.

Lebanon is hoping to make its first award by the end of the year.