Turkish-Israeli pipeline deal on the way? - HURRIYET DAILY NEWS

April/29/2017

“We could have Israeli gas in Turkey in the next three to four years,” said Shaul Meridor, the Israeli Energy Ministry’s director general, at the eighth annual Atlantic Council Istanbul Summit.

The delegations have been engaged in very constructive talks in the last couple of months, Meridor says, noting that a deal between the two governments could occur soon, once the technical and commercial aspects of the pipeline project to transport Israeli gas to Europe via Turkey are agreed upon.

When the energy ministers of both countries met on the sidelines of the World Energy Congress in October 2016 – which also marked the first ministerial-level visit since a reconciliation deal following the Mavi Marmara incident of 2010 – they agreed to establish working dialogue to explore the possibilities of carrying Israeli gas from the Leviathan gas field to Turkey via an undersea pipeline. This proposed pipeline would then be connected to the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) and thus reach European markets.

U.S. sees Greece as new energy hub of Europe - ABC.AZ

Obama's Greece visit in 2016

28.04.2017 17:35

Baku, Fineko/abc.az. The U.S. sees Greece as a key country for gas supplies to the EU, and this was officially announced yesterday within the Istanbul Summit of the Atlantic Council.

So, the U.S. Ambassador in Athens Geoffrey Pyatt stated that there’s a real potential for Greece to emerge as a significant European energy hub if the opportunities that are present now can be locked in.

“This would be an important driver of investment, going forward, and would help to answer the question that Greeks are asking, which is what drives their economy going forward as they begin to come out of this seven year crisis period and lay the foundation for sustainable growth,” the ambassador said.

Bid To Be A Regional Energy Hub - INVESTING.COM / BNP PARIBAS

Apr 27, 2017 08:19AM ET
By BNP Paribas (Philippe d'Arvisenet) Market Overview

Egypt has laid out its vision to become a regional energy hub following discoveries of large offshore gas reserves in the East Mediterranean. This vision is critical as the energy sector remains the major driver of the country’s balance of payments. Recent developments suggest that Egypt has a clear potential to become a trading and export hub, notably for natural gas. However, the realisation of this ambition will depend on the country’s capacity to mitigate geopolitical, financial and regulatory risks. This should go hand in hand with energy diversification to reduce dependence on gas and sustain anticipated exports.

Swiss Court Fines Egypt $2 Billion, Muddies Mideast Gas Market - BLOOMBERG

27 April 2017, 7:54 μ.μ. EEST

Yaacov Benmeleh & Tamim Elyan

• Court says Egypt breached contract to supply gas to Israel
• Israel now hoping to export natural gas to southern neighbor

A Swiss court ordered Egyptian natural gas companies to pay Israel’s state-owned electricity provider $2 billion in fines for breach of previous contracts, a step that could complicate chances for the two nations to sign future gas deals as Israel seeks to become an energy exporter.

The Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland said Egyptian General Petroleum Corp. and Egyptian Natural Gas Holding were liable for the damages caused by repeated attacks on a pipeline through the Sinai Desert that supplied gas to its neighbor, Israel Electric Co. said in a text message Thursday. The Egyptian companies had appealed a previous ruling from Dec. 2015 that imposed a $1.73 billion penalty.

West Nile Delta flows first gas offshore Egypt - OFFSHORE MAGAZINE

04/27/2017
Offshore staff

LUXEMBOURG – Gas production has started ahead of schedule at BP’s West Nile Delta Phase One project offshore Egypt, according to Subsea 7.

The contractor, which provided SURF services for the project, continues to work on the West Nile Delta platform extension and tie-in and BP’s Atoll project in the same area.

Elsewhere, the company is preparing to complete the final offshore campaign later this year for Wintershall’s Maria subsea project in the Norwegian Sea.

Oil slides to one-month low as Libya restarts Sharara field - WORLD OIL

4/27/2017JESSICA SUMMERS & MARK SHENK

NEW YORK (Bloomberg) -- Oil declined to a one-month low as Libya reopened its biggest field and as the market weighs increases in U.S. product inventories and crude output.

Futures fell as much as 2.9% in New York. Crude from the Sharara field in Libya has started flowing to the Zawiya refinery, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. Both U.S. gasoline and distillate stockpiles rose by the most since January last week, according to an Energy Information Administration report Wednesday. Nationwide crude output is at the highest level since August 2015.

President says natural gas discoveries in Cyprus' EEZ provide opportunities for cooperation - CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

27/04/2017 20:55 
CNA - CYPRUS/Nicosia

Discoveries of natural gas in Cyprus` exclusive economic zone provide opportunities for cooperation with third countries, in the region and beyond and this is why Cyprus has pursued effective collaboration with a number of neighbouring countries, including Egypt and Israel, President Nicos Anastasiades has said.

Addressing an event in New Delhi on Thursday organized by the Observer Research Foundation titled "The European Union – Indian Strategic Partnership in the 21st Century: A Cyprus Perspective", the President called on state or private companies from India to explore opportunities for partnerships with Cyprus or in collaboration with partner countries in the region.

TAQA to supply 1,300 cubic metres of gas to EBSC - DAILY NEWS EGYPT

27 April 2017
Mohamed Farag

Company is negotiating with Electricity Ministry to provide 9MW to the plant

The Egyptian Black Sand Company (EBSC) signed a contract with TAQA Petroleum Services Company to supply 1,300 cubic metres of gas per day to the black sand separation plant in Kafr Al-Sheikh.

Major general Ashraf Soltan, chairperson of the EBSC, said that the company contracted with TAQA to provide the gas necessary to run the separation plant and establish an external pipeline.

According to the feasibility study of the project, the total cost of gas delivery to the plant will reach EGP 19m. The project will be implemented over 8 to 12 months.

ENERGY BRIEF EGYPT Weekly Publication Issue 23 - April 18-20 2017 - EGYPT OIL & GAS (EOG)

ENERGY BRIEF EGYPT - EOG Weekly Publication - Issue 23 - April 18-20 2017 - DOWNLOAD HERE

Dana Gas completes first international condensate sale in Egypt - DANA GAS PJSC

Sharjah, UAE; 26 April 2017

Company set to receive full payment in US dollars for export cargo

Dana Gas PJSC ("Company"), the Middle East's largest regional natural gas company, has today achieved an important milestone with the first international sale of condensate in Egypt under the Gas Production Enhancement Agreement (GPEA).

The first cargo is approximately 150,000 barrels of Wastani condensate and was loaded on 15 April 2017. The buyer has issued a letter of credit and payment amounting US$ 7.2 million will be made to Dana Gas directly in USD. The cargo is the first to be directly exported by Dana Gas under the GPEA signed with the Egyptian government in August 2014. The cash proceeds generated from the Government's share of the incremental condensate sales will be used to start paying-down the outstanding receivables owed to Dana Gas by the Egyptian Government.

China Development Bank keen to finance petroleum projects in Egypt - ZAWYA

26 APRIL, 2017
Mahmoud Shaaban

The China Development Bank (CDB) is keen to finance petroleum and gas projects in Egypt, a delegation from the bank told Egyptian Oil Minister Tarek el-Molla on Tuesday.

The CDB delegation explored with Minister el-Molla possibilities of offering facilities to finance petroleum projects in Egypt.

Lebanon prequalifies eight more energy firms for offshore blocks - REUTERS

Wed Apr 26, 2017 8:42am GMT(Reporting By Ellen Francis and Angus McDowall; Editing by Edmund Blair)

BEIRUT, April 26 (Reuters) - Lebanon's government has prequalified eight more companies to bid for its first round of offshore exploration and production licences after prequalifying 46 companies in 2013, Energy and Water Minister Cesar Abou Khalil said on Wednesday.

The bidding process for offshore blocks 1, 4, 8, 9 and 10, three of which border Israeli waters, was postponed for years because of political paralysis in Lebanon until the formation of a new government late last year.

Commencement of Abu Sennan drilling campaign - ROCKHOPPER EXPLORATION

26 April 2017

Rockhopper Exploration plc (AIM: RKH), the oil and gas company with key interests in the North Falkland Basin and the Greater Mediterranean region, is pleased to announce the commencement of the 2017 drilling campaign on the Abu Sennan Concession in Egypt in which the Company has a 22% working interest.

Exploration well Al Jahraa SE-2X, situated on the recently awarded Abu Sennan-5 (Al Jahraa South East) Development Lease, was spudded on 25 April 2017 by the Operator Kuwait Energy as part of a two-well drilling campaign.

The well will target the Cretaceous Abu Roash-C reservoir in the fault block immediately to the south of the Al Jahraa South East discovery location where, if successful, it could add over 20 mmbbls of STOIIP to the development lease.

Energy spending will total USD 75 bn for the next four years - ENTERPRISE

Wednesday, 26 April 2017

Egypt will need USD 75 bn to develop its energy sector between 2018 and 2022, according to the development strategies of both the Electricity and Oil ministries. USD 45 bn will need to be spent on developing the electricity sector, with a long term plan to generate 51.7 GW by 2030. 

From the looks of the plan — formulated by consultancy firm SOFRECO — most of that spending will be geared towards building up capacity of coal power, whose spending will reach USD 38.6 bn until 2030, Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker tells Al Borsa. 

Condor Petroleum provides operations update on Poyraz Ridge gas field in Turkey - HYDROCARBONS TECHNOLOGY

Apr 25, 2017

Condor Petroleum has announced that construction of the Poyraz Ridge 15 million square cubic feet a day (mmscfd) gas processing facility in Turkey is proceeding to schedule, with the first gas being targeted mid-year.

In an operations update, the company also stated that all major gas processing equipment has been installed and the remaining components will arrive in the next few weeks.

Installations of the inter-field gas gathering lines and electrical power lines have been completed at the facility.

Delek Group looks to sell 10 pct stake in Tamar gas field - REUTERS AFRICA

Tue Apr 25, 2017 11:07am GMT
Ari Rabinovitch

JERUSALEM, April 25 (Reuters) - Israeli conglomerate Delek Group said on Tuesday it intends to sell up to a 10 percent stake in the large offshore field Tamar, Israel's main supply of natural gas.

SEE HERE THE PRESS RELEASE

Delek Group subsidiaries Delek Drilling and Avner Oil will each sell up to five percent of their stakes in Tamar, as well as the smaller field Dalit.

Delek said in a statement a new corporation will be set up that will sell securities, including bonds, on the Tel Aviv bourse, to raise money to buy the stake in the gas fields.

Fresh attempt to secure gas for electricity production - CYPRUS MAIL

The gas will most likely be processed aboard a Floating Storage
 & Regasification Unit (FSRU)

April 24, 2017

Elias Hazou

The government is said to be considering launching yet another tender to secure natural gas for electricity production, with decisions expected in early May.

According to daily Politis, the terms of the new tender will be different to previous ones – which fizzled out – in two key areas.

First, the tender is to be split up into two contracts, one for supply of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), the other for processing the fuel.

Bulgaria May Seek More Time To Reply To Gazprom Concessions - RIGZONE / REUTERS

Monday, April 24, 2017

Tsvetelia Tsolova; editing by Mark Potter

SOFIA, April 24 (Reuters) - Bulgaria may need more time to respond to concessions proposed by Russian gas giant Gazprom in an EU antitrust case, its energy minister said on Monday, adding that while Sofia saw the concessions as positive it would like to see them expanded.

A provisional agreement announced last month would see Gazprom avoid a fine of up to 10 percent of its global turnover over EU charges it abused its dominant market position and overcharged clients in eight eastern European nations.

The deal is subject to feedback from EU states and market players that should be sent by May 4 and could still be amended or even abandoned.

Fools Rush In: Europe Pursues Israel Gas Deal for Political Not Economic Reasons - SPUTNIK NEWS

24.04.2017  17:06 

An Israel-Europe gas pipeline deal elevates Israel to the status of a major Mediterranean energy exporter. However, critics suggest the move is about more than mere economics, and serves a number of greater geopolitical objectives - namely, immunizing Israel from criticism and sanctions, and damaging relations between Europe and Russia further.

Ministers from Israel, Greece, Italy and Cyprus, as well as the European Union Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy, signed a joint declaration in April, codifying a commitment to constructing a gas pipeline that will bring newly discovered natural gas in Israel to Europe.

The pipeline, described by Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz as "the longest and deepest subsea gas pipeline in the world," is expected to be in operation by 2025.

Turkish natural gas demand slowdown set to persist as Ankara shifts tack: OIES report - PLATTS

London (Platts)--24 Apr 2017 852 am EDT/1252 GMTBy Stuart Elliott, Edited by Dan Lalor
Turkish gas demand -- which five years ago was expected to almost double to 81 Bcm/year by 2030 -- is unlikely to even reach 60 Bcm/year in the near future as a result of a deliberate effort by Ankara to reduce the country's dependence on imported gas, a paper published Monday by the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies concludes.

Turkish gas demand fell last year for the first time since 2009 to 46 Bcm and is expected to be stagnant this year as Turkey looks to depend more on domestic resources for power generation, particularly hydro, coal, lignite, and wind and solar energy, the OIES said in the report.

The OIES said it expects a fall in gas consumption in the power sector in 2017 to be balanced by moderate growth in the residential and industry sectors.

Cyprus President is coming to India, with a Gandhi and a lot more to offer - INDIAN EXPRESS

April 24, 2017 3:58 am, Nicosia

Sanghamitra Mazumdar 

Gandhi is revered in Cyprus and the painting reflects the relationship India has had with the European nation for decades

The Rashtrapati Bhawan will soon have another Mahatma Gandhi portrait, this one by acclaimed artist George Georgiou. The work of art will be gifted to President Pranab Mukherjee by Nicos Anastasiades, the President of the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus, who begins a four-day tour to India on April 25 with ministers and trade delegates.

Gandhi is revered in Cyprus and the painting reflects the relationship India has had with the European nation for several decades now. The two countries share a British colonial past and have subsequently enjoyed good diplomatic ties. India supported Cyprus in its struggle for independence, which the latter got in 1960, and has continued to vote at the United Nations for a peaceful resolution of the Cyprus dispute since the 1974 Turkish invasion.

Hot summer for gas - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

April 23, 2017

George Telaveris

While Cyprus waits for Total to start exploratory drilling for natural gas in offshore Block 11 in July, Israel is close to selling natural gas to Turkey, risking a flare-up over the right to send gas to Turkey through the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Israel energy minister Yuval Steinitz told Bloomberg in March that a deal between Israel and Turkey was expected in the coming months.

“The purpose is to conclude by this summer a government-to-government agreement on a gas pipeline stretching from Israel to Turkey, in order to export natural gas from Israel and also the vicinity, to Turkey,” Steinitz said.

President Sisi underlines importance of developing Egypt’s petroleum sector - ENERGY EGYPT / STATE INFORMATION SERVICE

April 23, 2017

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi highlighted on Thursday 20/04/2017 the importance of developing the petroleum and mineral wealth sector in Egypt, as a cornerstone of national economy.

During a meeting with Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and Petroleum Minister Tarek el-Molla, the president urged attracting more foreign investments in this field.

He also highlighted the necessity of accelerating efforts for starting production of natural gas in recently discovered fields and removing all obstacles facing developers and investors in these fields, Presidential Spokesman Alaa Youssef said.

Egypt plans to defer shipments of LNG causing jitters in world market - ENTERPRISE PRESS

Sunday, 23 April 2017

There are jitters in the LNG market over Egypt’s planned deferral of some 25 shipments of LNG this year and more in 2018, various sources tell Reuters.

The nation’s appetite for LNG imports will decrease further once Egypt’s major gas developments come online, starting with the supergiant Zohr field this fall.

Only a small portion of the deferrals have so far been agreed with Egypt’s LNG suppliers so far.