Eni completes drilling third well in Zohr field - DAILY NEWS EGYPT

Company to complete establishing natural gas processing plant with 1bn cubic feet per day by December 2017

by Mohamed Adel

Italian company Eni completed the drilling of the third gas well at its giant offshore Zohr gas field in Egypt. The initial estimations of the third deepwater well are larger than the first and the second, with estimated reserves of 30tn cubic feet.

A senior official from Eni told Daily News Egypt that the initial production from the third gas well is very promising and the company is determining the volume of the new reserves. He added that Eni will start drilling the fourth gas well in the Shorouk concession next week, and will complete drilling within 40 days.

Eni Focused on Starting up its Egypt Gas Field Zohr by End-2017 - RIGZONE / REUTERS

Friday, April 15, 2016

PARIS, April 15 (Reuters) - Italy's Eni is focused on starting production at its giant offshore Zohr gas field in Egypt by end-2017, the company's Chief Executive Officer Claudio Descalzi said on Friday.

Speaking at an International Energy Agency event in Paris, Descalzi said Eni was moving fast on the project although there were some challenges.

"We have already started the civil work. It is challenging but we are focused," Descalzi said.

What lies beneath - EXECUTIVE MAGAZINE

Lebanon must act to keep its seat at the oil and gas table

April 14, 2016 by Roudi Baroudi

Lebanon has missed several opportunities to grow its nascent oil and gas industry at an ideal pace, but now regional developments threaten not just further delays, but also permanent losses unless the country acts to protect its national interests.

The new urgency stems primarily from two principal events. The first was last summer’s discovery of the giant Zohr gas field off Egypt’s northern coast by Italy’s ENI, a find estimated by some to have doubled the North African country’s natural gas reserves overnight. It also significantly increased the likelihood of commercially viable deposits in nearby offshore acreage belonging to Cyprus, Lebanon and Israel. This has sparked renewed interest in this section of the Eastern Mediterranean basin from major international oil companies.

Greece neglects its hydrocarbons - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

April 13th, 2016

NGE spoke to the executive vice-president of Flow Energy, Elias Konofagos. Flow is a multi-disciplinary environmental, economics, management services and trading company based in Athens. Before that he was the general director of Hellenic Petroleum’s upstream division.

Konofagos has been an influential and often outspoken voice in the Greek oil & gas sector for many years. It was as a result of this that he was appointed as personal advisor on energy to Greece’s former prime minister, Antonis Samaras.

Dr Konofagos, you have always spoken your mind and for a long time now you have been making the case that potentially Greece can be a major, world class, oil & gas province. What do you base this on?

Italy's top diplomat makes surprise Libya visit - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

Libyan PM Fayez Sarraj 

April 13th, 2016

Italy’s foreign minister Paolo Gentiloni made a surprise visit to Tripoli on April 12 to meet Libyan prime minister Fayez Sarraj, becoming the first top western official to visit the Libyan capital since a new government was installed there two weeks ago.

“I am delighted to be in Tripoli [to provide] Italy's emergency aid and to support Sarraj's Government of National Accord,” wrote Gentiloni on Twitter.

His ministry later added that Gentiloni said he went to offer Libya Italy's political, humanitarian and economic support, and to express Italy and the international community's readiness to cooperate and contribute in the fight against terrorism.

Ministry of Petroleum to allow BG to export liquefied gas through ADCO - ENERGY EGYPT / DAILY NEWS EGYPT

April 12, 2016 

BG withdrew its oil drills from the Burullus field in February before the company was acquired by Shell.

The Ministry of Petroleum vowed to allow British Gas Group (BG), now a subsidiary of Shell, to export liquefied gas through the [Idku LNG plant].

The decision comes after BG informed Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) that work on the 9B phase of the Burullus field would resume if the company was allowed to export 100 to 150 cubic feet per day and increase the price of gas. BG halted work and withdrew its oil drill from the field in February due to the Egyptian’s government’s failure to pay the money due to the company.

Egypt: Italy spat and the inevitable questions about ENI - MESP

April 11, 2016, Lebanon

The brutal murder of Giulio Regeni, an Italian doctoral student, in Egypt in January 2016 is threatening the once close relations between Cairo and Rome, with speculations the Egyptian security services might be involved.

Since he came to office in June 2014, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has forged close ties with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Italy is Egypt’s first European trade partner (and the second overall, after the U.S.). Back in November 2014, Prime Minister Renzi hailed Egypt as a “strategic partner” during a visit to Rome by President Sisi (his first official visit to Europe after his accession to power), at a time many western countries viewed the new Egyptian regime with a certain apprehension. Regeni’s killing came just as business, political and security cooperation between Italy and Egypt were being ramped up.

‘Cyprus deal a Turkey gas pipeline prerequisite’ - IN-CYPRUS

incyprus — 10/04/2016

In an interview with Greek-language daily Kathimerini, published on Sunday, Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said a prerequisite for a gas pipeline to Turkey is a solution to the Cyprus problem.

In reference to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s energy aspirations, Kasoulides said a Cyprus reunification deal could offer the possibility of routing a gas pipeline from the eastern Mediterranean to Turkey, either for domestic consumption or for transport to Europe.

“[Such a development] implies, of course, a solution to the Cyprus problem for which Turkey is invited to contribute via stances that would allow a settlement, rather than positions that lead to dead ends,” Kasoulides said.

Noble Energy in talks to trim stake in Tamar gas field -media - REUTERS

Sun Apr 10, 2016

Texas-based Noble Energy is in talks with Israeli institutions to sell an 11 percent stake in Israel's Tamar natural gas field for at least $1 billion due to cash flow needs, Israeli media reported on Sunday.

The Calcalist and TheMarker, two financial newspapers, said Noble is negotiating with Clal Insurance, Harel Insurance and Finance and Menora Mivtachim but did not cite sources or further details of the talks.

A Noble spokeswoman in Tel Aviv declined to comment.

Egypt to cut fuel subsidies as govt seeks to reduce deficit - AHRAM ONLINE / REUTERS

A female employee poses with a fuel pump at a petrol station
in Cairo, Egypt February 24, 2016. (ReUters)

Reuters , Sunday 10 Apr 2016

Egypt will reduce spending on fuel subsidies by nearly 43 percent in the 2016/17 budget due mainly to lower global energy costs, officials said on Saturday.

Finance Minister Amr El-Garhy told a news conference state energy subsidies would fall to 35 billion Egyptian pounds ($3.94 billion) from about 61 billion pounds in the 2015/16 budget.

Consumers reacted angrily when the government cut spending on energy subsidies in mid-2014, a measure that caused domestic prices of natural gas, diesel and other fuels to rise by as much as 78 percent. They were reduced again in the current budget.

Contracts for Limassol port oil services to be signed in July - CYPRUS MAIL

APRIL 9TH, 2016 EVIE ANDREOU

The contracts with the company providing services to French energy giant Total, scheduled to drill for gas later this year, will be signed in July, Transport Minister Marios Demetriades said on Saturday.

According to Demetriades, at the moment there is a tender competition for companies to provide services to Total, which has agreed to relocate from Larnaca to Limassol port.

The government has been trying to convince the hydrocarbon companies, interested in drilling for natural gas off Cyprus, ENI, Noble and Total, to relocate to Limassol, after the Larnaca municipal council decided in February not to extend the stay of MedServ, the company providing support services to ENI and Total.

Turkey to legislate for further opening of gas market: report - PLATTS

Istanbul (Platts)--8 Apr 2016

Turkey is planning new legislation to further open the country's gas market, which is currently dominated by state gas importer and transmission operator Botas, Mustafa Yilmaz head of Turkey's energy regulator EPDK said in an interview published in Turkish business daily Dunya Thursday.

The new gas market law would facilitate the unbundling of Botas and the holding of new tenders for the transfer of Botas' import volumes to the private sector to enable the operation of a liberalized gas market, Yilmaz said.

Yilmaz added that Turkey's energy market is ready for such a move, pointing out that previous tenders for the transfer of volumes from Botas' import contracts had experienced limited success because the market was not ready.

U.S. Says Israel Gas May Help Europe Diversify From Russian Fuel - BLOOMBERG

by Jonathan Ferziger & Elliott Gotkine, April 7, 2016

Israel’s offshore natural gas fields, potentially the largest in the Mediterranean Sea, could boost energy trade in the region and even help Europe diversify away from Russian fuel, according to U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz.

The U.S. hopes Israel can resolve domestic challenges blocking development of its Mediterranean gas field “in a timely way,” considering that they contain substantial quantities for exports, Moniz said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. Israel’s gas exports “can be used in a strategic way” in the region and beyond, he said.

Gov't foot-dragging is costing Israel's gas industry - GLOBES

07/04/2016, Hedy Cohen

EMC's Noach Hager exemplifies how government policy is failing Israel's natural gas industry.

It was exactly two years ago that Noach Hager, an economist at Bank Leumi at the time, published the report titled “The Potential of Natural Gas in the Israeli Economy”, where he outlined that “regulation is the main barrier for the timely development of Leviathan”, and outrageously forecasted that “the earliest Leviathan will be able to produce first gas for the domestic market will be in 2019”.

Hager invested three years in studying for a MSc in Energy Management, with the hopes of contributing to the “bright” future of Israel’s natural gas industry. During the formulation of natural gas agreement one year ago, Hager published his master’s thesis on the establishment of a state-owned gas company to participate alongside private companies in Israel’s upstream industry.

Egypt replaces heads of state oil and gas companies - REUTERS

Thu Apr 7, 2016

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egyptian Oil Minister Tarek al-Molla replaced the heads of state oil company EGPC and state gas company EGAS on Thursday, part of a slew of new appointments in the Egyptian energy sector.

Mohamed al-Masry will replace Khaled Abdel Badie as head of EGAS, while Tarek al-Hadidi will take over from Masry as head of EGPC.

(Reporting by Ehab Farouk; Writing by Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Mark Potter)
© Thomson Reuters 2016 All rights reserved

BP signs $1 billion deals with Egypt for the development of Atoll gas field - ENERGY EGYPT / THE CAIRO POST

April 6, 2016

British Petroleum (BP) had signed a number of deals with Egypt concerning the development of Atoll gas discovery in March in the North Damietta Offshore Concession in the East Nile Delta, the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum announced Tuesday.

The investments of this phase are estimated at a $1 billion out of $3 billion allocated for that discovery, the ministry stated, adding that the agreements were signed between the group and the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS).

It is expected that this field has 1.5 trillion cubic meters of gas and 31 million barrels (mmbbl) of condensates. The production is expected to start in 2018, according to the BP Group official website.

Kurdistan to export oil through Iran - RUDAW

5.4.2016

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) will start exporting oil through Iran as part of an agreement due to be signed in a months time, a Kurdish official told Rudaw on Tuesday.

“A delegation from the KRG Ministry of Natural Resources met with Iran’s Ministry of Oil for talks on exporting Kurdistan’s oil through Iran,” said Abdullah Akreyi, head of Iran-KRG relations in Kurdistan’s Department of Foreign Affairs.

“There is a month left for final agreement between the two sides,” Akreyi added.“Talks about exporting Kurdistan’s oil through Tabriz and Kermanshah provinces are progressing and in the final stage with only one month left for both sides to sign the agreement."

EGPC, EGAS, BP Sign Agreements over Atoll Gas Production - EGYPT OIL & GAS

Tuesday, 5th April 2016

The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), and British company BP signed agreements to facilitate gas production from the Atoll field, Tarek El Molla, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, said, according to a press release received by Egypt Oil & Gas.

These agreements conclude the construction, transportation, and processing of gas produced from the well which belongs to the Pharaonic Petroleum Company.

El Molla also reviewed the development plan and the early production programs of the Atoll well in the North Damietta Offshore Concession in the East Nile Delta, which was discovered in March 2015 and is considered one of the important recent gas discoveries.

Gas Fields – Incentives to Form Relations with Neighboring Countries - ISRAEL DEFENSE

Two panels at the Hadera EnergyTech Conference revolved around gas fields as an incentive to improve the geo-political situation in the region and around the issues of gas taxation in Israel

Dan Arkin | 4/04/2016

The discovery of gas fields is a tremendous incentive for the economic development of Israeli industries, for development of transportation and for the reduction of air pollution. It is also an incentive to create an infrastructure of improved and innovative international contacts and relationships with neighboring countries, such as Jordan, Egypt, the Palestinian Authority, Greece, Cyprus and Turkey. This is the main conclusion of two panels of energy experts, who participated in the Hadera EnergyTech Conference held at the Hilton Hotel in Tel Aviv.

All the speakers expressed their hope that the Israeli government and all relevant parties will rush to develop the Leviathan gas field, as well as other, new fields. Yossi Abu, CEO of Delek Drilling, said, "the use of gas is a revolution in public health due to reduction of air pollution. Gas is a key factor in positioning the geopolitical status of Israel ".

E.Med: Short-term problems cloud longer-term outlook - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

April 04th, 2016

There’s still a lot of optimism surrounding the eastern Mediterranean, despite a recent decision by the High Court in Jerusalem that will delay Israeli field developments and continuing disputes between Cairo and Shell concerning Egyptian field development.

Cyprus has demonstrated its confidence that the region’s fortunes will bounce back by announcing a third licensing round; while the European Commission’s Vice President for Energy Union, Maros Sefcovic, has publicly stated EU backing for a pipeline to Greece.

It’s certainly a contradictory background, made all the more difficult to assess because access to the most commercially viable regional market, Turkey, depends on two major political developments: rapprochement between Israel and Turkey and a solution to the 41-year-old partition of Cyprus.

What this means is that there is a fundamental difference between what can be achieved in the short term and the much larger prospects and possibilities in the long term.

Planned Greece-Bulgaria line draws interest - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

April 04th, 2016

At least six companies have submitted expressions of interests (EoI) in capacity of the gas interconnector that is to be built between Bulgaria and Greece, while the deadline for submitting EoI documents was extended due to continuing interest.

The six are: Greece’s Depa and Gastrade (of the Copelouzos group); Italy’s Edison; state-owned Bulgaria’s Bulgargaz; Azerbaijan’s Socar; and US Noble Energy, according to Bulgaria’s energy minister Temenuzhka Petkova.

The total adds up to some 4bn m³/yr, which exceeds the initial design capacity of the line, Bulgarian national radio reported.

Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria is related to security of supply and is also extremely important in terms of market development, Petkova said.

The pipeline is designed to pump around 3bn m³/yr with the option to boost it to 5bn m³/yr with the installation of an intermediate compression station.

Socar’s interest in IGB has been explained by the company plans to expand gas supply to the western Balkans.

Israel's Tamar Field a model of transparent growth - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

April 03rd, 2016

Tamar’s performance last year proved a great one for its partners, according to NGE analysis. A robust growth in production to 8.3 bn m3 (+10.6%) was translated into a good set of financial data. Revenues grew 3.2% to $1.53bn while the operating cost grew by just 0.1% to $148.2mn, operating profit grew by 4.6% to $953mn, 62.2% of revenues, and net income totaled $751mn, (+18.3%) 49% of the revenues.

From an accounting point of view Tamar gas field is unusual as it is the five partners’ only asset in Israel and an isolated operating unit. This makes it easy to identify all its revenues, expenses, financial transaction and future cash flows.

The five partners are US Noble Energy with 36% and operator; Delek Group subsidiaries Delek Drilling and Avner each have 16.325%; Isramco has 28.75% and Alon Gas Exploration the remaining 4%.

Steinitz sees gas solution "within months, even weeks" - GLOBES

03/04/2016, 12:09, Ran Dagoni, Washington

Visiting US Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz will presumably raise Noble Energy's problems after the High Court of Justice disallowed the gas framework.

Minister of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water Resources Yuval Steinitz said yesterday that he was not aware of pressures supposedly exerted on Israel by Noble Energy in the wake of the striking down of the stability clause in the Israeli government's agreement with the gas exploration companies by the High Court of Justice. Talking to "Globes", Steinitz said, "I hear what everyone is saying and I have not heard that Noble is applying pressure on me or on anyone else in Israel through US legislators."

Eni reportedly to sell 20% Zohr stake to Lukoil - ENERGY EGYPT / ITALIAN INSIDER

April 2, 2016

Italian energy company Eni reportedly will sell 20 percent of the Zohr gas field, the largest gas discovery in the Mediterranean and made by Eni last year, to Russian Lukoil, industry sources say. The works are coming along quickly and at the end of February they received the extraction authorisation.

The extraction is planned to get underway in 2017 and will have recovered 500,000 barrels by 2019. The project is valued at five billion euros, but the investment in the fields will come to 12 billion. It’s also for this reason that the administrative director Eni Claudio Descalzi has said on several occasions that Eni won’t get far with 100 percent of Zohr in its pocket.

There is also another gas field that will be partly sold before Zohr, however. It is in the Mozambique Channel, where Eni has been operating for months to reduce the cost by involving other partners. It’s slightly different however, as the Area Four gas is part of a large area of fields therefore will take 50 billion of investment.

Netanyahu loses gas battle but wins war - JERUSALEM POST

02.04.2016

Why the High Court ruling cleared the last legal hoops to making the natural gas deal a reality.
Listening to the rhetoric of the critics and the supporters of the High Court of Justice’s landmark decision striking down the government’s natural gas policy, one would imagine that it was a low point of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s premiership and a high point for opponents of the policy.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

To understand why, it is important to look not just at the overall result. Admittedly the High Court did strike down, or at least suspend for around a year, the gas policy.

But break down the disparate, multiple decisions and votes the High Court made on several extraordinary issues beforehand, and you will find that while opponents of the deal won the battle and will probably achieve some changes they want in the industry framework, Netanyahu won on a vast majority of the issues – and many of his wins were not obvious ones.

So let’s look at the votes, starting with the votes against the deal.

Turkey can’t replace Russian gas with Qatari LNG - ASIA TIMES NEWS

The world's biggest Liquefied Natural Gas tanker Duhail
crosses the Suez Canal in thei file photo

BY SALMAN RAFI on APRIL 1, 2016

Turkey made a smart move in December 2015 when it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Qatar to replace Russian gas with liquefied natural gas (LNG) from that Gulf country.

By showing Russia it can find alternative sources of gas supply, Turkey probably hoped to extract some concessions with regard to the role of Kurds in the future of Syria.

While Turkey inked the LNG deal to serve its own interests, Russia was taking some positive steps. In March, the Russian military began its partial pull-out from Syria. In another surprise move, Russia lifted the ban on flights to Antalya, a resort destination in Turkey popular with Russian tourists.

DESFA deal hits buffers - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

March 31st, 2016

The long-running attempt to sell the Greek gas grid operator Desfa to Azerbaijan’s Socar hit another setback, but the latter says it still expects to complete a deal by 2017.

Socar’s purchase of a controlling stake of Desfa is of great importance to Azerbaijan, giving it control of a European gas supplier and enhancing its role in providing energy security for Europe, the company sources said.

Socar is keen on LNG business too. The plans to upgrade the country’s LNG terminal in Revythoussa near Athens will meet these interests and is important for gas supply in the wider region beyond current route of the southern gas corridor.

“Currently we are in the process of reducing the stake of Desfa through sales to potential buyers in Europe and this process is expected to be completed in late 2016”, sources told NGE.

Gas, oil exploration deal signed with new investor - THE JORDAN TIMES

Mohammad Ghazal - Mar 29,2016

AMMAN — The National Petroleum Company and IPG, a UK-based company, signed a production sharing agreement on Tuesday to explore for oil and gas in the eastern parts of the Kingdom.

Under the deal, IPG will work on increasing output from Al Risheh gas field to reach around 50 million cubic feet per day during the first year of the contract. Currently, gas output from Al Risheh gas field is around 12-13 million cubic feet per day.

“This is a very important agreement for Jordan to increase production from Al Risheh gas field and explore for oil and gas in Al Safawi area,” Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Ibrahim Saif said on Tuesday at a press conference to sign the deal.

The four-year agreement can be prolonged for one more year, said the minister.

Egyptian investor and owner of IPG Yehya Al Koumi, whose company was granted concession rights to explore for gas and oil in Al Risheh gas field and Al Safawai area near the borders with Iraq, said the company enjoys international expertise and is home to world-renowned experts in the area.

Pavlopoulos sees closer ties ahead of three-day Israel trip - KATHIMERINI

29.03.2016

Ahead of a three-day official visit to Israel on Thursday, Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos praised relations between the two countries, saying they were never better.

“Relations between the two countries are at a peak, including both the economy and tourism,” he told daily newspaper Israel Hayom Tuesday and hailed the energy cooperation between Greece, Israel and Cyprus as a pillar of stability in the region and a source of prosperity.

“We are together on a path toward a very promising and demanding future,” he said.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Koutras’ response to journalists’ questions on the Turkish Foreign Ministry announcement regarding the call for the third round of tenders for licensing of exploration in the Cypriot EEZ - HELLENIC REPUBLIC

Monday, 28 March 2016

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Konstantinos Koutras stated the following in response to journalists’ questions on the Turkish Foreign Ministry announcement regarding the call for the third round of tenders for licensing of exploration for hydrocarbons in the Cypriot exclusive economic zone (EEZ):

“The Republic of Cyprus is a member state of the United Nations and the European Union, and, like every sovereign state, it is exercising its sovereign rights over the EEZ and continental shelf deriving from international law, customary and conventional.

Turkey needs to abandon its threatening rhetoric and respect the inalienable rights of the sovereign Republic of Cyprus. The incitement of artificial crises and tensions does not benefit the course of the negotiations or the management of the unstable situation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In fact, it is extremely counterproductive.”

Israel top court strikes down gas development deal - MIDDLE EAST EYE

Court suspended ruling for one year to allow parliament time to amend objectionable stability clause

Monday 28 March 2016

Israel's top court on Sunday struck down Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's landmark natural gas policy aimed at paving the way for the exploitation of Mediterranean gas reserves, while suspending formally striking the law for one year so that he and parliament can fix an objectionable clause.

A panel of Supreme Court justices said in their ruling that a clause in the plan that prevented it from being changed for a decade was unacceptable.

"We have decided to cancel the gas deal because of the stability clause" that would have barred future governments from altering the deal, the justices said. They suspended the ruling for a year to enable parliament to amend the agreement.

Berri: Ban was Receptive of Lebanese Request for U.N. to Demarcate Maritime Border - NAHARNET

28-3-2016

Speaker Nabih Berri revealed that the demarcation of Lebanon's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the Mediterranean was among the issues he discussed with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon during his visit to the country last week, reported the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat on Monday.

Berri told the daily that Ban was “receptive of an official Lebanese request that the U.N. demarcate the Lebanon's EEZ, which borders Israel.”

This was a major topic of discussion between Ban and Prime Minister Tammam Salam as well, added the speaker.

Noble Energy CEO expresses displeasure over gas deal - Y NET TEWS

03.28.16

David L. Stover, Noble Energy's Chairman, President, and CEO, commented, "The Court's ruling, while recognizing that timely natural gas development is a matter of strategic national interest for Israel, is disappointing and represents another risk to Leviathan timing.

Development of a project of this magnitude, where large investments are to be made over multiple years, requires Israel to provide a stable investment climate.

“Noble Energy has consistently maintained that stability is a minimum condition for project development, and our position has not changed. As we have stated before, we will vigorously defend our rights related to our assets to protect shareholder value. It is now up to the government of Israel to deliver a solution which at least meets the terms of the Framework, and to do so quickly."

Israel Supreme Court Rules Against Offshore-Gas Deal - THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Deal to be suspended for one year; government required to amend terms

By ORR HIRSCHAUGE and RORY JONES

March 27, 2016

TEL AVIV—Israel’s Supreme Court on Sunday ruled against a landmark deal to develop and export the country’s offshore gas reserves, a major setback for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who campaigned for it.

The panel of judges called the deal unconstitutional, citing a clause in its framework that gave energy companies pricing and regulatory stability for 10 years regardless of potential shifts in the government. The main stakeholders in the fields, U.S.-based Noble Energy Inc. and Israeli partner Delek Group Ltd, had argued that the stability clause was required for them to make the investments necessary to develop the fields.

Turkey slammed for 'provocative move ' over Cyprus drilling - FAMAGUSTA GAZETTE

The new licensing process is not affected by the dialogue for the solution of the Cyprus problem which is under way, since the Republic does not suspend exercising its sovereign rights because of the talks, it adds.

CYPRUS - FAMAGUSTA GAZETTE•Saturday, 26 March, 2016

The Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said that Turkey's statement on the new process regarding hydrocarbons' exploration within the Republic's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is an expression of Ankara`s provocative and destabilising attitude.

Furthermore it stresses that the process is not affected by the UN-led peace talks which are underway to resolve the Cyprus problem and reunite the country, divided since the 1974 Turkish invasion.

Cyprus Declares Third Offshore Round - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

March 24th, 2016

Cyprus formally declared a third offshore licensing round for hydrocarbon exploration in its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) March 24.

This calls for bids to be submitted by 21 June. It appears that the intention is to award licenses for blocks 6, 8 and 10. The choice of these blocks is based on the results from total re-evaluation of the energy potential of Cyprus EEZ following the discovery of the giant Zohr gas field.

The key criteria to be used in the evaluation of bids and award of licenses are:

Shell's talks with Cairo hit choppy waters - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

March 24th, 2016

Royal Dutch Shell and the Egyptian government have been at pains to downplay reports this week that talks on developing the West Delta Deep Marine (WDDM) concession 9B have reached an impasse. This comes as Italy's Eni is gearing up to develop an even bigger offshore gas field, Zohr.

Daily News Egypt reported that BG, now part of Shell, had demanded a price of $7/mn Btu from the government for gas to be produced at 9B, whereas the latter had agreed to pay $5.88. Its March 22 report cited a source close to the talks who said that Shell would only resume negotiations if the government gave into its price demand or else immediately paid $1bn back dues owed to BG. If Cairo agreed, the $7 could be negotiated downward once back dues were paid, the source added.

Official launch of 3rd Exploration Licensing Round - TWITTER ACCOUNT OF CYPRIOT MINISTER

Official launch of 3rd Exploration Licensing Round in Cyprus' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). 

Available blocks 6, 8, 10.

Eni’s Zohr sale causes concern for Cairo - INTERFAX

By Rachel Williamson 24 March 2016

Italy’s Eni has indicated it is looking to sell down its stake in its giant Zohr field in Egypt, a scenario that is causing concern among Egyptian stakeholders.

Eni Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi said on a conference call last week that Zohr was among assets the company was considering targeting for disposal. He said Eni had had to change its strategy for Zohr as the requirement to bring the start of production forward to 2017 had resulted in extra upfront capex costs in the form of another onshore processing facility.

Medserv results exceed targets by 38% - TIMES OF MALTA

Thursday, March 24, 2016, 00:01

Medserv has reported a profit before tax of €6 million representing an increase of 38 per cent over forecast. Reported group revenue for the year was €42.2 million.

The group said that its performance in 2015 was attributed to a number of factors, including the strong business flow conducted out of Malta in support of the ongoing operations offshore Libya, and to the performance of Medserv (Cyprus) Ltd which continues to service ENI out of the company’s shore base in Larnaca. Finally, engineering and maintenance services continued to grow in 2015.

As the global oil and gas sector continues to suffer from the effect of oversupply of oil to the market, the company has refocused and moved ahead with its investment plans to ensure it can continue to be of service to its growing list of blue chip customers in the Mediterranean and beyond.

Egypt: Oil ministry rebuffs reports on BG spat - OFFSHORE ENERGY TODAY

23 March 2016

BG Egypt, a subsidiary of BG Group, a UK company recently taken over by Shell, has reportedly stopped work on some Mediterranean Sea projects, offshore Egypt.

According to a Reuters report on Tuesday, which cited an official at the Egyptian General Petroleum Corp (EGPC), the company couldn’t reach a deal with the Egyptian government on the price of gas. He reportedly said that BG Egypt had abandoned “work at 9A+ and 9B” project and removed the drilling rigs earlier this month.

Offshore Energy Today has reached out to Shell, given that the Anglo/Dutch oil giant now owns assets previously controlled by BG Group.

TAP gas pipeline to go ahead despite low oil prices - executive - REUTERS

Tue Mar 22, 2016

Construction of the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) to take gas from Azerbaijan to Europe will go ahead despite low oil prices, but costs will be in sharp focus, a senior executive for TAP said on Tuesday.

The 870-km (540-mile) pipeline, which will link Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz II field with Italy, crossing through Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea, is the largest project to bring new supplies to European consumers.

Asked about the impact of plunging oil prices on the project, TAP's country manager for Greece, Rikard Scoufias, told an energy conference in Athens: "The project will not have an impact in terms of challenging the realisation of TAP in any way."

"The financial investment decision has already been taken," he said. "But it does put an additional emphasis on cost management."

BG Egypt halts some development wells over price dispute -source

Tue Mar 22, 2016, By Ehab Farouk

BG Egypt has suspended work at some Egyptian development projects after it failed to agree with the government on the price of gas, an Egyptian General Petroleum Corp (EGPC) official told Reuters on Tuesday.

"BG has stopped work at 9A+ and 9B after failure to reach an agreement on the fixed price to be paid for extracted gas, and it withdrew rigs working on the 9A+ wells on the seventh of March," the EGPC official said.

Egypt's Ministry of Petroleum denied BG Egypt had stopped development as a result of price disagreements and said in a statement that "negotiations over timelines for the projects" are ongoing.

The development areas include several deepwater wells in the West Nile Delta.

Turkey hits historic gas consumption record in Jan. - ANADOLU AGENCY

Turkey's monthly natural gas consumption reached historic high at 5.78 bcm in Jan. 2016, Turkish Energy Watchdog says

22.03.2016 ANKARA

Turkey's monthly natural gas consumption reached a historic record high at 5.78 billion cubic meters (bcm) in January 2016, according to data from Turkish Energy Watchdog.

In January 2016, 5.78 bcm of natural gas was consumed, Turkish Energy Market Regulatory Authority, EMRA, announced on Tuesday in its monthly natural gas report for January.

The new monthly record is 5.7 percent higher than the previous highest consumption which was seen in January 2015 with 5.47 bcm.

Turkey's daily highest consumption was also seen in January 2016 with a consumption rate of 235 million cubic meters of gas, Turkey's Energy Ministry had announced in February 2016

Egypt signs 5-year oil agreement with Saudi Arabia - AHRAM ONLINE

Monday 21 Mar 2016

A $1.5 billion deal was signed at the fifth Egyptian-Saudi cooperation council meeting in Riyadh to fund Sinai's development. (Photo Courtesy of the Ministry of International Cooperation.)

Egypt signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia, under which the North African nation will meet its needs of oil products for five years, Egyptian international cooperation ministry stated on its website on Sunday.

The signing is part of the fifth meeting of the Egyptian-Saudi coordination council held in Riyadh and chaired by Egyptian minister of international cooperation Sahar Nasr.

In January, Saudi Arabia pledged $20 billion worth of petroleum products to Egypt over five years with facilitated payments.

Russian interest in East Med and Cyprus gas - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

Charles Ellinas — 20/03/2016

In a week that saw Russia pulling some of its armed forces out of Syria and signs of increasing cooperation between Russia and the US in the region, it is important to examine Russian interest in energy, and particularly gas, in the wider East Med and Cyprus.

Many in the past tried to explain this interest on the basis of Russia protecting its global energy interests and particularly its dominance of the EU gas market. However, the contention that Russia’s involvement in Syria is driven by natural gas interests may be far-fetched.

Russia’s deep involvement in Syria, and cooperation with the US, has changed the East Med regional reality, redirecting the bloody conflict from a dead end to another path.

These issues are examined in this article.

Four companies apply to import natural gas - DAILY NEWS EGYPT

Mohamed Adel March 19, 2016
EGAS is studying their credentials, official says

Number of factories owners decided to cease operations until a recent decision to increase the price of mazut and natural gas was rescinded. (AFP Photo)

The Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) has received applications from four companies seeking to import natural gas to supply to the domestic market through the national grid.

An EGAS source told Daily News Egypt that the holding company is negotiating with the four companies to provide them with the necessary data in order to give them the initial approval until the law regulating gas imports is issued.

Cyprus’s geology similar to Zohr area – minister - INTERFAX

By Verity Ratcliffe 18 March 2016 

Cypriot Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis is optimistic about his country’s third licensing round. (PA) Cypriot Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis is optimistic about his country’s third licensing round. (PA)

Cyprus’s imminent third licensing round will offer offshore acreage with similar geology to the area in which Egypt’s Zohr field was discovered, according to Yiorgos Lakkotrypis, Cyprus’s energy minister.

Lakkotrypis spoke to Natural Gas Daily about the country’s energy potential, developing the Aphrodite field and routes to market for Cypriot gas.

Russian interests to dictate Israel-Turkey deals - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

Israel President Reuven Rivlin (left) with the Russian President
Vladimir Putin in Moscow 

March 17th, 2016

Israel and Russia are about to agree upon a modus operandi in the East Mediterranean concerning weapons and natural gas deals, several Israeli media reports indicate. According to various assessments, the bottom line of such an agreement would be that Israel will not sell natural gas to Turkey and, in return, Russia won't supply S-300 anti-aircraft missiles and other advanced weapon systems to Iran and other regional enemies of Israel.

The basis for the agreement all started about six months ago when, in a surprise move, Russia deployed about 50 jet fighters, helicopters, and ground forces to a Syrian air base in the northwest of the country. It was the first time in a generation that the Israeli Air Force had to confront an adversary as formidable as the Russian air force, and worse, Israel's interests were threatened by the might of the Russian state on its borders.

Energy Ministry says EU keen on receiving Israeli natural gas - JERUSALEM POST

By MICHELLE MALKA GROSSMAN \ 03/17/2016

The National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Ministry said on Wednesday said that the European Union is interested in receiving natural gas from Israel.

According to a statement issued by the ministry, National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Minister Yuval Steinitz met with EU Ambassador to Israel Lars Faaborg-Andersen on Wednesday in order to “be updated on the time line regarding the development of gas reservoirs and the possibility of exporting natural gas from Israel to Europe.”