Cyprus’ Energy Minister and the heads of Noble, Shell, and Delek have agreed that the best method of exploiting the natural gas cooperation in the ‘Aphrodite’ field in the island’s exclusive economic zone needs to be found, after a meeting on Thursday.
Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis said after a meeting the three CEOs had with the President and himself that block 12, where ‘Aphrodite’ is located, had been discussed and the new face of the consortium after BG was bought out by Shell.
Lakkotrypis has mentioned that this visit was the first time that the CEO and the President have met.
“We had the opportunity to discuss the latest developments in relation to the exploitation of the ‘Aphrodite’ field, especially in light of the goal to sell natural gas to Egypt,” the minister said.
He added that they had discussed the difficulties that exist, and declining oil prices were also discussed along with the best methods to exploit the ‘Aphrodite’ field to the Egyptian market.
Asked if there are timeframes on the field’s exploitation, Lakkotrypis said that this had been discussed during the conversation concerning the development and production plan for the field. He mentioned that they are trying to move the plans forward quickly, in order to have a sustainable trade plan for the development plans.
When asked about co-exploiting the fields in the area, Lakkotrypis said that the ‘Aphrodite’ field solely belongs to Cyprus, and that the partners in the consortium are working in the Cypriot EEZ. “‘Aphrodite’ will be developed on its own,” he said.
The CEO of Noble, David Stover, has said that the partnership is strong and this helps to promote the project.
Stover mentioned that during the meeting President Anastasiades had been informed both on the project’s progress and future plans to further promote the project.
Asked if the process could be sped up, the Noble CEO has said that a number of factors must come into play for something like that to happen, one of which is the cost of the project.
“We now have an exceptional opportunity, as there are few but large plans worldwide that are being promoted,” he said.
He added that another factor is the developments in the market, which impact at what prices the natural gas will be sold, and where it will be sold.
Asked whether or not the agreement between Egypt and Cyprus helps, Stover said that any agreements of this nature are helpful.
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