Can natural gas pay for a solution? - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

25/06/2016

Cyprus gas funding a peace deal was a hot topic with statements and counter-statements by the President, the Foreign Minister and many others, such as:

Studies in progress to fund settlement from proceeds from natural gas Natural gas to contribute to the funding of the cost of settlement;

Cyprus FM says gas could partly fund reunification;

Government denies Foreign Minister statements on gas;

President: We will not use natural gas to pay others’ obligations;

President: A minor part from the natural gas proceeds could be used to fund the solution, The President confirms in all respects that the Foreign Minister statements are in-line with government thinking;

Israeli Natural Gas Industry – Where do we go now? - OILFIELD TECHNOLOGY

Partners Shiri Shaham and Simon Weintraub at Israeli law firm Yigal Arnon & Co. explore the natural gas industry in Israel.

After years of deliberations, negotiations and amendments, the Israeli government recently adopted its final framework for the regulation of the burgeoning natural gas sector. This exciting development is a reflection of the country’s vibrant democracy, strong rule of law, and climate of regulatory certainty; it will hopefully foster geopolitical stability in the eastern Mediterranean basin, and will potentially promote economic co-development projects and unprecedented investment opportunities in the region.

Lebanon Gets Seismic As Israel Prepares To Develop Massive Gas Field - OILPRICE.com

By Charles Kennedy - Jun 24, 2016, 12:41 PM CDT

Seismic surveys now show that Lebanon’s portion of the prolific Levant Basin is showing promising oil and gas reserves, as the country lags far behind Israel in tapping into this Mediterranean hydrocarbon wealth.

After years of delay, Lebanon’s petroleum authority has finally obtained seismic surveys—tasked as far back as 2002—showing that oil reservoirs in the southern region, particularly in Blocks 8 and 9, could have significant potential.

East Med project feasible, IGI Poseidon chief tells conference - ENERGY PRESS

23/06/2016

Elio Ruggeri, CEO of IGI Poseidon, has stressed the importance for southeast Europe of the East Med pipeline, a project to link Greece with major natural gas deposits in Cypriot and Israeli territorial waters, in a speech delivered at an Economist conference in Athens.

Ruggeri noted that the IGI Poseidon consortium is contributing to the effort to develop a natural gas corridor of multiple uses in the wider region, which will include Russian gas, the most important aspect.

“We are making an effort with Gazprom and, by the end of the year, will know whether the idea will lead to some sort of initiative,” Ruggeri remarked.

Leviathan partnership authorises $120mn FEED - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

June 23rd, 2016

Leviathan partners have approved a $120mn front-end engineering and design contract for the development of the giant gas field offshore Israel. The three partners – Delek Group (45.3%), Noble Energy (39.7%) and Ratio (15%) – authorised Noble Energy, the operator, to start the Feed phase.

In a filing to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) the Israeli partners said that Noble Energy could sign contracts for "a detailed engineering plan" for the project. The engineering work will include the design of the gas treatment and production rig and other activities. The fixed rig will be 10 km off shore and will be connected to a second entry point to Israel in the north of the country.

Update with Regards to the Dolphin Natural Gas Field in the License 351/Hanna Area - DELEK GROUP

Tel Aviv, June 22, 2016. Delek Group (TASE: DLEKG, US ADR: DGRLY). Further to the filing of an application by the partners in License 351 / Hanna to the Petroleum Commissioner at the Ministry for National Infrastructures, Energy and Water to recognize the Dolphin natural gas reservoir in the area of the Hanna License as a discovery in the meaning of the Petroleum Law, 1952, and receipt of the lease in accordance with the provisions of the Petroleum Law, Delek Group’s gas subsidiaries announce that on June 20, 2016 the Commissioner informed that if the license partners provide by August 1, 2016 an irrevocable commitment to develop the Hanna license together with Phase 1 of the Leviathan field as well as a plan of the requested area to be declared as a discovery, the Hanna license partners will then be granted a lease during the four months following (namely by December 1, 2016), and this is in order for the development of this lease to be completed by the end of 2019.

Leviathan Field - Agreement to Receive Front End Engineering Design (FEED) for the Production Platform - DELEK GROUP

Tel Aviv, June 22, 2016. Delek Group (TASE: DLEKG, US ADR: DGRLY) ("the Company") announces that attached is an Immediate Report published by each of Delek Drilling Limited Partnership and Avner Oil Exploration Limited Partnership ("the Partnerships") concerning an agreement to receive Front End Engineering Design (FEED) services for the Leviathan project production platform.

Pursuant to what was stated in the Partnerships' Annual Reports to December 31, 2015 ("the Annual Reports") concerning the updated development plan for the Leviathan field ("the Development Plan") in the Partnerships' Immediate Report dated May 22, 2016 concerning ratification of the Gas Outline Plan, as defined in the said report ('the Gas Outline Plan"), and to the Partnership's Immediate Report dated June 2, 2016 concerning the Commissioner's approval of the Development Plan, the Company announces that the Partnerships have authorized Noble Energy Mediterranean Ltd., the operator of the Leviathan project ("the Operator"), to enter into an agreement for a cumulative value of USD 120 million (for all the partners) to receive Front End Engineering Design (FEED) for the production platform ("the Platform"), as approved in the Development Plan. It should be noted that the Leviathan Partners are working to close other agreements for the purchase of equipment and/or services related to the Development Plan, as approved, and they expect to sign off on them in the near future.

Young ADIPEC announces partnership with Abu Dhabi Education Council - ENERGY EGYPT

June 22, 2016

• Community Outreach Programme Supports Government Efforts to Prepare Today’s Youth for New Energy Landscape.
• 450 Students from 18 Schools Across Abu Dhabi City, Al Ain, and the Western Region to Participate.

Young ADIPEC, the annual youth outreach initiative by the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (ADIPEC), has announced it is partnering with the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) as part of government efforts to cultivate the next generation of home-grown energy professionals.

The first-time cooperation between the two entities will enable Young ADIPEC to relay a strong and powerful message to the wider school community: The future of the UAE’s energy sector depends on today’s educated and informed youth.

Baku eyes $30-50bn profit from Southern Corridor - NATURAL GAS EUROPE

June 21st, 2016 11:10am

Azerbaijan is hoping in the best case for profits in excess of $50bn from the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC). State oil company Socar told NGE June 20 that even the gloomiest outlook showed that Azerbaijan’s share in the profit of SGC would be at least $30bn over the 25 years' duration of the sales and purchase agreements.

SGC is a project consisting of the development of Shah Deniz gas field stage 2 (SD2), including the South Caucasus Pipeline Expansion (SCPX), as well as the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (Tanap) and Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP).

Azerbaijan has 16.7% share in Shah Deniz project, 58% in Tanap and 20% in TAP. The total costs of the implementation of SGC is expected to reach $39.1bn, of which about $9bn would be invested by Azerbaijan. “In return, the country is expected to earn $30bn-$50bn from SGC, depending on oil prices and additional incomes from transiting the other suppliers’ gas through SGC,” Socar said.

Delek, Supergas win hospitals natural gas tender - GLOBES

21/06/2016, 19:07
Hedy Cohen

Conversion to natural gas will save Israel's 13 government hospitals NIS 60 million a year.
Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG), controlled by Yitzhak Tshuva, and Supergas, controlled by Azrieli Group Ltd. (TASE: AZRG), have won a tender for converting government hospitals to natural gas, sources inform "Globes." The tender is for 11 general hospitals and two psychiatric hospitals. Together with Baran Group (TASE: BRAN; Nasdaq: BRANF), Delek will convert six hospitals, and together with Ludan Engineering Co. Ltd. (TASE: LUDN), Supergas will convert seven others. The companies will also be responsible for supplying natural gas to the hospitals for five years. The companies' bids were far lower than expected by the Ministry of Health.

Nostra Terra makes headway in Egypt - ENERGY VOICE

21/06/2016 5:42 am
Rita Brown

Nostra Terra today confirmed its subsidiary, Independent Resources Egypt (IRE), had been given the initial green light from Egyptian authorities.

IRE received security clearance and is now is formally registered with the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).

Nostra Terra chief executive Matt Lofgran said: “We are very pleased that our 50 per cent. owned subsidiary IRE has taken the next step forward in establishing its operations in Egypt. As a company we remain excited by the potential for oil & gas in Egypt and look forward to updating the market on further developments.”

OneSubsea wins contract for Zohr development, offshore Egypt - WORLD OIL

6/20/2016

HOUSTON -- OneSubsea, a Schlumberger company, has been awarded an engineering, procurement and construction contract totaling more than $170 million from Belayim Petroleum Company (Petrobel). OneSubsea will supply the subsea production systems for the first stage of Zohr field, located in the Shorouk Concession, offshore Egypt.

“Zohr is one of the largest gas fields discovered in the Mediterranean Sea to date, and is also the world’s second longest step-out, a distance greater than 150 km. This step-out will be enabled by OneSubsea controls systems with fiber-optic communications technology,” said Mike Garding, president, OneSubsea. “Our supplier-led approach to the field development, coupled with our FasTrac program capability, and our integrated offering that includes flow assurance, subsea production system and landing string capabilities, will help Petrobel meet their first gas commitment.”

BP approves investment in Egypt gas field 15 months after discovery - REUTERS

A BP logo is reflected in a car window at a petrol station in
LondonJanuary 15, 2015 - REUTERS/LUKE MACGREGOR

British oil major BP has approved investment in the first phase of developing the large Atoll gas field offshore Egypt, only 15 months after it first announced its discovery.

BP, which declined to give an investment figure for the project, said the field was on track to deliver its first gas in the first half of 2018, set to pump 300 million cubic feet a day of gas to the Egyptian market.

BP decided in November to fast-track the development of Atoll, estimated to contain 1.5 trillion cubic feet of gas and 31 million barrels of condensates.

The company is in a tight race with other oil and gas explorers in the region to develop the Mediterranean's huge untapped fossil fuel reserves.

How gas could warm relations between Israel and Turkey - REUTERS

Mon Jun 20, 2016 6:03am EDT
JERUSALEM | BY LUKE BAKER

On the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in Washington in March, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a private meeting with Israel's energy minister, Yuval Steinitz. It was the highest level contact between Israel and Turkey since diplomatic relations broke down six years ago after Israeli forces raided a Turkish ship bound for Gaza, killing 10 Turkish activists.

The meeting, which lasted 20 to 30 minutes and whose details have not been previously disclosed, discussed the war in Syria, Iran's presence there, terrorism – and natural gas. That last item is a key driver of efforts to forge a rapprochement between Israel and Turkey: At stake are reserves of natural gas worth hundreds of billions of dollars under the waters of Israel and Cyprus. To exploit them Israel will likely require the cooperation of Turkey.

Kuwait holds talks with Petroleum Ministry to refine oil in Egypt - ENERGY EGYPT / MUBASHER

June 19, 2016

KPCA delegation from Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) had talks with the Egyptian petroleum minister over the possibility of refining the Kuwaiti oil in Egyptian refineries, according to a statement issued on Friday.

The studies included the increase of shipping and storage facilities in SUMED’s location in Ain Sukhna and Sidi Kerir, as well as raising storage capacity.

This steps comes in line with Kuwait’s strategy for increasing oil production to 4 million barrels a day by 2020, and exploiting Egypt’s strategic platform to expand in Europe, said KPC’s director general Nabil Bouresli.

He clarified that Kuwait intends to expand in the African market, by entering the Egyptian market.