Egypt to halt imports of LNG by end of FY 2017/18 - minister of petroleum - REUTERS

CAIRO, Jan 27 (Reuters)

Reporting by Momen Abdelkhalek; Writing by Eric Knecht; Editing by Jeremy Gaunt

Egypt plans to stop importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) by the end of the 2017/18 fiscal year ending in June as it speeds up production at recently discovered gas fields, Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla said on Saturday.

Egypt said previously that it would halt imports by the start of 2019.

Molla said the country will save $250 million per month by no longer importing LNG. 

Cyprus receives €101MM grant for FSRU project - HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

JAN/25/2018

Connecting Europe announced on January 25 that it will support the introduction of natural gas in Cyprus through the CyprusGas2EU project (EU support of €101 MM).

The grant will help end the present energy isolation of the Cyprus, bring diversification to a region dominated by a single source of supply, and help reduce air pollution and emissions by allowing switching from heavy fuel oil to gas for power generation. It will also improve energy security and price competitiveness.

Read the full press release from the European Commission here.

Gulf Publishing Company will host the fifth incarnation of its Eastern Mediterranean Gas Conference (EMGC) in Nicosia, Cyprus,from 21–22 March 2018. The conference provides attendees with the latest and most accurate information on the region’s developing natural gas industry, and the ability to gain entry to regional markets and seek potential new business partners.

EGAS to issue bid round in 1H2018 - ENTERPRISE

Wednesday, 24 January 2018

EGAS is planning on having a bid round for oil and gas exploration in east Mediterranean and onshore Delta blocks in 1H2018, Chairman Osama El Bakly said, according to Al Masry Al Youm. 

EGAS will also move ahead with its seismic mapping of blocks in west Mediterranean before setting them up for a bid round.

CORRECTED-Noble Energy says to expand Israel activity amid natgas success -REUTERS

JANUARY 24, 2018 / 12:58 PMReporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by Maayan Lubell and David Evans

(Corrects Noble official’s title)

JERUSALEM, Jan 24 (Reuters) - U.S.’s Noble Energy said on Wednesday it plans to expand in Israel ahead of the 2019 start of production at the large Leviathan natural gas site off Israel’s Mediterranean coast.

Texas-based Noble owns some 40 percent of Leviathan, which has estimated gas reserves of 622 billion cubic meters -- mostly earmarked for exports -- while Israeli conglomerate Delek Group owns another 45 percent through two subsidiaries.

Noble also holds 32.5 percent of the Tamar field, Israel’s primary supply of natural gas, although it must reduce its holding to 25 percent by 2021 under government plans to open the market to competition.

Gazprom gets go-ahead for second TurkStream offshore gas pipeline - OFFSHORE

JAN/23/2018

MOSCOW – The Turkish authorities have awarded Gazprom a construction permit for the second string of the TurkStream gas pipeline’s offshore section through the Black Sea, terminating at the Turkish coast.

TurkStream operations are in progress at three sections: onshore in Russia and Turkey and offshore in the Black Sea.

Allseas has completed laying more than 760 km (472 mi) of the two offshore strings since the program started last May. Construction of the landfall in Russia is nearly completed, while in Turkey, work has started at the construction site of the receiving terminal.

Gazprom now has all required permits from the Turkish government for the offshore area, and this means both strings of the gas system should be in operation on time, before the end of 2019, said the company’s chairman Alexey Miller.

Transport ministry hits back in Limassol port dispute - CYPRUS MAIL

A EDT barge at Limassol port

JAN 22, 2018

Claims by the oil and gas services company EDT operating out of Limassol port that they have incurred damages because of omissions by the transport ministry are completely out of touch with reality, the ministry said on Monday.

In a brief statement following press reports that EDT was suing the government for €150m, the transport ministry said the claims had no legal basis, according to advice from their legal advisors.

On Sunday, left-wing Haravghi newspaper ran an article saying that according to the lawsuit, EDT claimed that since October 2016, the transport ministry and the minister, Marios Demetriades, kept giving assurances that developments regarding the privatisation of the port would “not cause any disturbance to the functioning of the work of our company “.

Operations at Limassol port were privatised at the beginning of last year.

The report also claimed that the ministry, through the Cyprus Ports Authority, handed down ultimatums to the company which effectively ended discussions that could have resolve outstanding issues although it did not specify what they were.

Egypt paid $200 mln in foreign oil company arrears in Jan - finance minister - REUTERS

JANUARY 21, 2018 / 9:09 AM

Reporting by Ehab Farouk; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman

CAIRO, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Egypt’s Finance Minister Amr El Garhy said on Sunday the country had paid $200 million in arrears owed to foreign oil companies in January, and would pay another $550 million in February and March.

Egypt owed foreign oil companies $2.4 billion at the end of June 2017, the petroleum ministry said this week. There was no newer figure.

Cairo has pledged to eliminate arrears by the end of June 2019 and not to accumulate more, part of its drive to draw new foreign investment to an energy sector that is attracting interest following several major gas discoveries.