Azeri SOCAR says wants Greek natural grid purchase concluded - REUTERS

Sat Sep 3, 2016 4:41pm GMT

ATHENS, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR wants to go ahead with a deal to buy Greek natural gas pipelines operator DESFA and has not taken any decision to pull out of the process, its chief executive in Greece said in a newspaper interview published on Saturday.

SOCAR agreed in 2013 to buy a 66 percent stake in the crisis-hit gas supply grid operator for 400 million euros ($448 million). But the acquisition has stalled since SOCAR was ordered to sell on 17 percent of DESFA to a third party to satisfy the EU competition authorities.

Complicating the sale further, Greece passed a law in July which raised DESFA's gas tariffs from next year by a much lower amount than expected, a move which SOCAR said has dramatically reduced DESFA's value and put the deal at risk.

Russia Pushing Ahead With Turkey Gas Link as Ties Improve - BLOOMBERG

Elena Mazneva
September 3, 2016 — 1:47 PM EEST

• Russia seeks to build Black Sea gas route to bypass Ukraine
• Government sent draft gas pipeline agreement to Turkey

Russia is on track to accomplish a major energy project aimed at cementing its ties with Turkey following a recent thaw in relations.

The government in Moscow expects officials in Ankara to make necessary decisions in one to two months to proceed with a natural gas pipeline under the Black Sea that may kick off by end-2019, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Saturday. A draft intergovernmental agreement has been sent to Turkey, he told reporters in the Russian Far Eastern city of Vladivostok.

Cyprus, Egypt and Greece are already planning to expand energy cooperation - NEW EUROPE

Egypt's El Molla (left) & Cyprus' Lakkotrypis, 31 August 2016

SEPTEMBER 2, 2016
By Kostis Geropoulos

Cyprus has signed a deal to build a pipeline to supply Egypt with natural gas once production starts from the Aphrodite field located offshore the Mediterranean island.

The agreement sets the political framework for additional commercial agreements, Cyprus’ Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis and Egypt’s Petroleum Minister Tarek el-Molla said.

Asked if this gas will also be exported to Europe and other markets, Constantinos Filis, director of research at Institute of International Relations, told New Europe this depends on the agreements that will be made by the Consortium that will take over.

Eni successfully drilled and tested Zohr 5x - ENI

Eni successfully drilled Zohr 5x, the fifth well on Zohr structure, which confirmed the potential of the field at 30 Tcf OGIP.

01/09/2016 14:30

San Donato Milanese, 1st September 2016. Eni informs that Zohr 5x, the fifth well on Zohr structure has been successfully drilled to the final TD of 14,271 ft (4,350 m). The Zohr 5x well is located in 1,538 m of water depth and 12 Km south west from the discovery well Zohr 1x.

The well proved the presence of a carbonatic reservoir and gas accumulation also in the South-Western part of the Zohr mega-structure encountering about 590 ft (180 metres) of continuous hydrocarbon column in the carbonate sequence with excellent reservoir characteristics. The results are confirming the potential of the Zohr Field at 30 Tcf OGIP.

Israel Courts Foreign Money in Effort to Become Gas Exporter - NEW YORK TIMES

SEPT. 1, 2016
STANLEY REED

LONDON — Israel’s energy minister laid on the charm as he spoke to a few dozen oil executives, contractors and analysts in a crowded hotel conference room about the country’s natural gas prospects.

He crowed that the country could one day be a top supplier to Europe, while explaining how multinationals in other industries were already enamored of Israel.

“It is not enough to have a lot of potential,” said the minister, Yuval Steinitz, who was kicking off a road show for energy investors on Thursday at the Copthorne Tara Hotel in London. “From now on it is my job to make Israel very attractive for new exploration, for new investments, for newcomers.”

Exploitation of 'Aphrodite' field needs to be sped up - SIGMA LIVE

01.09.2016 15:02

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.

Delek Group Weighs Markets for $4 Billion IPO (Video) - BLOOMBERG

8:04 AM EEST
September 1, 2016

Delek Group, the Israeli energy company controlled by billionaire Isaac Tshuva, is considering New York, London or Amsterdam for an initial public offering of its stake in the Tamar natural gas field valued at $3 billion to $4 billion, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Bloomberg's Elliott Gotkine reports on "Bloomberg Markets Middle East." Watch the 2 minute VIDEO. 
(Source: Bloomberg)

Shell announces new natural gas discoveries in Egypt's Western Desert - REUTERS / ZAWYA

31 August, 2016

CAIRO, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell announced on Wednesday new natural gas discoveries in a concession area of north Alam El-Shawish in Egypt's western desert.

The initial quantities discovered were estimated at about half a trillion cubic feet of gas with more possible reserves, Eden Murphy, chairman and CEO of Shell said in a statement.

The discovery could produce from 10 to 15 percent of the total production of Badr el-Din Petroleum company, which is a joint venture acting on behalf of the state-owned Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) and Shell in production operations, Murphy added.

Funding lapses blamed for Libyan output woes - OIL & GAS JOURNAL

HOUSTON, Aug. 31
08/31/2016
By OGJ editors

Libya’s reconstituted government is receiving blame for failure of oil production to recover from a slump caused by civil war and for the related loss of income.

The Petroleum Facilities Guard said it will close Gulf and Al Wafa oil fields in southern Libya because it hasn’t been paid for security services, Reuters reported.

The group earlier reached an agreement with the Presidency Council to open the Ras Lanuf, Es Sidra, and Zuetina terminals, but Reuters said the facilities remain closed (OGJ Online, Aug. 1, 2016).

The security force had claimed to be blockading the terminals to resist corruption and illicit oil sales. As part of the agreement to reopen the ports, it was to receive funds said to be overdue salary payments.

Cyprus signs deal with Egypt for gas transfers via pipeline - REUTERS

Lakkotrypis, Cyprus (left), El Molla, Egypt (right) 31.8.2016

Wed Aug 31, 2016 2:27am EDT

Aug 31 Cyprus signed a deal on Wednesday for the transfer of natural gas via pipeline to Egypt, once extraction starts of discoveries made off the Mediterranean island.

U.S. energy firm Noble found an estimated 4.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in one prospect off Cyprus in late 2011.

A consortium of Italy's ENI and Korea's KoGas have a contract with Cyprus for exploration over three offshore blocks. French oil major Total has exploration rights over one block.

Wednesday's accord was signed in the Cypriot capital Nicosia by Egyptian petroleum minister Tarek El Molla and Cypriot energy minister Yiorgios Lakkotrypis.

Spanish energy giant seeks to accelerate Tamar natural gas deal - ISRAEL HAYOM

Tuesday August 30, 2016

• Union Fenosa Gas is considering expediting its negotiations with the companies controlling Israeli offshore gas field
• If successful, gas will be piped to Spain through Egypt
• Deal requires upward of $1.5 billion investment by Tamar partnership.

Hezi Sternlicht, News Agencies and Israel Hayom Staff

Spanish energy giant Union Fenosa Gas is said to be considering accelerating its negotiations with the Tamar partnership as well as boost the gas quantities included in the deal, the Bloomberg news agency reported Monday.

Newcomer Energean will attract other int’l firms to explore for gas in Israel - JERUSALEM POST

By SHARON UDASIN
08/30/2016 20:38

Latest find and ongoing projects accelerating development in the entire region.
The expected purchase of the Karish and Tanin gas reservoirs by the Greek oil and gas company Energean will be a catalyst for other international companies interested in exploring Israel’s Mediterranean, a source linked to the project told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday.

Energean’s entrance into the Israeli gas industry “opens the sector,” the source said. “The signal to the market is given: there’s something going on in Israel. You used to have a monopoly. Now you have a potential market.”

Although still pending Israeli government approval, the $148.5 million deal was signed by Athens-based Energean Oil & Gas in mid-August to purchase the gas reservoirs from two Delek Group subsidiaries, as well as pay the Israeli companies royalties from future gas and condensate sales. The likely sale of Karish and Tanin marked a first concrete step toward advancing Israel’s gas industry, following recent approval of the contentious “gas outline” that rattled the sector for all of 2015.

Major oil firms interested in Eastern Med gas - UPI / THE ARAB WEEKLY

Aug. 29, 2016 at 10:07 AM
Walid Khadduri

BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Major international oil companies have submitted bids to participate in Cy­prus' third licensing round for three southern offshore blocks adjacent to Egypt's northern waters.

The three Cypriot licensing rounds have encountered a number of challenges. Turkey's threats to operating firms overshadowed the first licensing round. It threatened to boycott IOCs operating in Cypriot waters. It did not allow the IOCs to take crude oil from Turkish ports. The IOCs were also not allowed to distribute petroleum products in the Turkish market. Turkey has boycotted Eni but the Italian firm challenged the decision in court and the dispute is being adjudicated.

Israeli powergen to burn more gas

August 29th, 2016, 3:45amYa'acov Zalel

Israel's energy minister, Yuval Steinitz has ordered the closure of four coal-fired power generation units and their replacement with two new natural gas-fired combined-cycle power generation units. He announced his decision following a public campaign to shut down the 40-yr old units that are part of Orot Rabin, the biggest power generation plant in Israel, near Hadera, north of Tel Aviv.

As part of his decision, Steinitz cancelled an NIS 8bn ($2bn) scheme to install smoke scrubbers in coal-fired units. The plants will however be maintained as back-up generators for the grid.

Gas deal with Egypt - IN-CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

August 28, 2016

Egypt and Cyprus are expected to sign the first of three bilateral agreements on natural gas when Egypt’s energy minister Tarek El Molla visits the island on Wednesday.

It’s a move that will lay down the legal framework for companies to be able to sign contracts on exporting natural gas from the Cyprus Aphrodite field in Block 12 to Egypt.

“This is a bilateral agreement, one of three, which are necessary to create the conditions for the commercial agreement that is going to come from the companies and is under negotiation as we speak,” Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis told the Cyprus Weekly.
The other two bilateral agreements under discussion involve cross-boundary pipelines and host agreements between the companies and each of the two governments.

Eni to raise Noras field production to 1bn feet of gas a day in 2017 - DAILY NEWS EGYPT

Increase comes alongside efforts to offset natural rate of decline, says source  

Mohamed Adel August 28, 2016

Italian energy company Eni aims to increase the Noras field production to 1bn cubic feet of gas a day at the beginning of 2017, instead of 700m feet in the current year.

A source in the petroleum sector told Daily News Egypt that drilling the development wells showed that Noras’ output will be even more gas than the initially-detected potential production of 700m cubic feet of gas a day.

He explained that 180m cubic feet gas a day from three wells in Noras will be linked to the national gas grid by mid-September, boosting the total output to 700m feet.

New finds could bring hope for LNG - IN-CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

August 28, 2016

By Lefteris Adilinis and Fiona Mullen

The prospect of a land-based liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant could be back on the table if Total finds significant quantities of gas when it drills in Block 11 next year or if the new licensing round comes up with large discoveries, according to energy minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis.

An LNG plant is not in the government’s current plans and the environment for LNG is currently difficult, with global companies cutting back production. At the same time, however, construction costs have been coming down because of steel prices.
“A lot will depend on the size of the discovery: how big it is, what the prices would be at the time, what other conditions there are,” the minister told the Cyprus Weekly.

When asked what production options would be possible if there were a very big discovery, Lakkotrypis said: “it could make LNG viable too”.