French gas giant Total has plans ready for exploration in the Exclusive Economic Zone in Cyprus for the period 2017-2018, which coincides with a push to reunite the island and maximise benefits from natural resources.
Total has drafted a detailed programme on four drills inside Block 11 of the Cyprus EEZ for the period 2017-2018, according to daily Phileleftheros.
The French company is “moving ahead with preparations for the initial drill which will require a drilling rig of the latest technology capable of reaching deep underwater.”
Phileleftheros added that drilling decisions were made a week ago and Total has opened bids already for subcontractors as well as infrastructure support at Limassol port.
Both Energy Minister George Lakkotrypis and Transport Minister Marios Demetriades are in the loop, according to the daily, which says the company’s CEO is also set to meet President Nicos Anastasiades in mid-October to discuss the next steps.
Cyprus has a number of production-sharing contracts at the ready.
But natural gas analyst Charles Ellinas, a contributor to the Cyprus Weekly, has argued that political leaders in the region often fail to acknowledge that Europe is not desperate to get gas from the Eastern Mediterranean.
While foreign governments, including the US and the EU, have maintained that the Republic of Cyprus has an unquestionable right to move forward with gas exploration, they have also called for a resolution to the Cyprus problem as soon as possible.
Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci has echoed Turkey’s call to put off any unilateral action on Cypriot gas until both communities, Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot, can participate together in joined decisions and actions.
Anastasiades has said repeatedly that the Republic of Cyprus will go forward with gas plans, which would benefit both communities in the long run.
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