Kasoulides: Turkish interference expected to increase in Cyprus’ EEZ - CYPRUS MAIL

FEBRUARY 10, 2018

Turkey’s interference in Cyprus’ energy plan is expected to increase following new discoveries in Cyprus’ EEZ, Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said on Saturday in the wake of harassment reports of a drillship on Friday by Turkish navy vessels.

In statements to public broadcaster CyBC, Kasoulides said the Turkish vessels that had harassed Italian giant ENI’s ‘Saipem 12000’ drillship had forced the captain to manoeuvre out of their way and eventually come to a stop 15 nautical miles from the ‘Soupia’ (Cuttlefish) Block 3 plot, to which it was heading. ENI on Thursday announced promising findings in Block 6 of Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

TEKMOR Note: It's about time Turkey realized that Cypriot EEZ is EU EEZ; it's no longer a cat chasing mouse game in and around Cyprus; there's a dog present.

Total strengthens its position in the Mediterranean region by entering two exploration blocks offshore Lebanon - TOTAL

2018/02/09
TOTAL Press release

Paris - Total-led international consortium (Total 40%, ENI 40%, Novatek 20%) and the government of Lebanon have signed two Exploration and Production Agreements covering Blocks 4 and 9 located offshore Lebanon, in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. These agreements provide for the drilling of at least one well per block in the first three years.

“An established player in Lebanon’s marketing sector, Total is delighted to expand its presence in the country to the exploration & production segment. These agreements are part of the Group’s exploration strategy in the Mediterranean region”, stated Stéphane Michel, Senior Vice President Middle East/ North Africa, Exploration & Production at Total.

The consortium's priority will be to drill a first exploration well on Block 4 in 2019.

What Does Calypso Mean for Cyprus and Eastern Mediterranean Gas? - CENTER FOR STRATEGIC & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

February 9, 2018

Nikos Tsafos

Facts

• On February 8, 2018, Eni announced a gas discovery, Calypso, in Cyprus. Per the company, the find “confirms the extension of the ‘Zohr like’ play” into Cyprus, a reference to the massive Zohr field found in Egypt in 2015. The company did not release estimates on how much gas might be in place but promised “additional studies” to delineate the resource and assess its options.

• If confirmed, this would be the second major discovery in Cyprus, the first being Aphrodite, made in December 2011. It would also mark a reversal for Cyprus’s hydrocarbon fortunes after some bad news; previously, appraisal drilling had led companies to reduce how much they thought Aphrodite might hold, and earlier exploration wells either came up dry or led only to a “small gas discovery” (as per the operator).

Turkish vessels harass drillship in EEZ - CYPRUS MAIL / CyBC

FEBRUARY 9, 2018

Andria Kades

Turkish vessels are in the area surrounding Cyprus’ block 3 in the island’s EEZ (exclusive economic zone), it was reported on Friday.

According to government sources quoted by the state broadcaster Cybc, Turkish vessels were harassing the Saipem 12000 drillship shortly before it entered the Cuttlefish plot in block 3.

The area is an exploration target for Italian energy giant ENI.

Egypt’s LNG imports nosedive in January - LNG WORLD NEWS

9 FEB 2018

Egypt’s imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) declined dramatically in January as the country is gearing towards halting the imports due to increase in domestic gas production.

The country’s LNG imports in January dropped 66% year-on-year, pursuing the downward trend registered in the fourth quarter last year when they declined 40 percent as production from new fields ramp up, according to the France-based international association for gas, Cedigaz.

The Cedigaz infographic shows that only Qatar and Norway supplied LNG to Egypt in January.

Egypt that has turned a net importer over the course of 2016, due to falling production, has deployed two FSRUs in Ain Sokhna that serve as the country’s import terminals.

Egypt’s West Kalabsha concession receives high-density 3D survey - OIL & GAS JOURNAL

HOUSTON, FEB/08/2018
Tayvis Dunnahoe

CGG and Ardiseis, subsidiary of Arabian Geophysical & Surveying Co. (Argas), have delivered 2,000 sq km of what the partners refer to as reservoir characterization-ready broadband seismic data on the West-Kalbsha survey on behalf of Apache Corp. in Egypt’s Western Desert.

The ultradense survey represents 72 million traces/sq km, which is 2-3 times denser that any survey acquired to date. In what the companies are calling a step-change, CGG deblended the data through an algorithm. The company’s CleanSweep and EmphaSeis acquired low-frequency-rich broadband data starting from 1.5 hz, which is free of the harmonic noise contamination that is known for hindering broadband high-productivity Vibroseis acquisition.

Eni/Total find natgas off Cyprus in field close to Zohr - REUTERS

FEBRUARY 8, 2018 / 12:34 PM

Reporting by Michele Kambas; editing by Jason Neely and David Evans

ATHENS (Reuters) - Italy’s Eni and France’s Total have discovered a promising natural gas field off Cyprus, Eni said on Thursday, saying the find looked geologically similar to the mammoth Zohr field off Egypt.

Further analysis was required to determine the range of gas volumes and define further exploration and appraisal operations, Eni said.

“Calypso 1 is a promising gas discovery and confirms the extension of the ‘Zohr like’ play in the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ),” Eni said in a statement.

Eni is the operator of the offshore block with a 50 percent participation interest, while Total is a partner with the remaining 50 percent.

The Italian oil and gas group reported the Zohr discovery in 2015. Located in the Egyptian offshore Shorouk block about 190 km north of Port Said, Zohr holds an estimated 30 trillion cubic feet of gas, the largest ever discovered in the Mediterranean.

Calypso in Cyprus’s waters is an estimated 80 km away.

In Nicosia, Cypriot Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis said an “extensive column” of clean natural gas was discovered.

Eni announces a gas discovery Offshore Cyprus - ENI

San Donato Milanese (Milan), 8 February 2018

Eni has made a lean gas discovery in Block 6 Offshore Cyprus with Calypso 1 NFW. The well, which was drilled in 2,074 meters of water depth reaching a final total depth of 3,827 meters, encountered an extended gas column in rocks of Miocene and Cretaceous age. The Cretaceous sequence has excellent reservoir characteristics. Calypso 1 is a promising gas discovery and confirms the extension of the “Zohr like” play in the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone.

An intensive and detailed data collection (fluids and rock samples) has been executed on the well. Calypso 1 is a promising gas discovery and confirms the extension of the “Zohr like” play in the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Israel says seeks diplomatic solution to Med gas spat with Lebanon - REUTERS

FEBRUARY 7, 2018 / 4:14 PM
Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Alison Williams

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel seeks a foreign-mediated diplomatic resolution with Lebanon over a disputed Mediterranean gas field, the Israeli energy minister said on Wednesday after a surge in hostile rhetoric between the enemy countries.

“We hope for, and are prepared to move forward on, a diplomatic resolution to this matter,” Yuval Steinitz told the Ynet news site when asked about the Block 9 field, for which Lebanon has issued an oil and gas exploration tender, drawing condemnation from Israel’s defense minister last week.

Tamar partners won't cut IEC gas prices until 2021 - GLOBES

7 Feb, 2018 14:20
Kobi Yeshayahou

A report ahead of next month's bond issue by Tamar Petroleum says the partners will only revise down the price at which it sells gas to Israel Electric in 2021 and only by 12.5%.

Ahead of next month's planned bond issue by Tamar Petroleum for the purpose of completing the deal for the acquisition of 7.5% of the rights in the Tamar natural gas reservoir from Noble Energy, the partnerships in Tamar today published a revised report on the reservoir, including its projected cash flow.

Egypt warns Turkey over eastern Mediterranean economic interests - REUTERS / JERUSALEM POST

FEBRUARY 7, 2018 13:26

CAIRO - Egypt on Wednesday warned Turkey against any infringement of its economic rights in the eastern Mediterranean under a maritime border demarcation agreement signed in 2013 with Cyprus that allows exploration for gas in the area.

The discovery of the massive Zohr gas field in 2015 has spurred a race for exploration in the eastern Mediterranean, an area that is believed to hold big natural gas deposits crucial for energy-hungry Europe.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu appeared to raise objections over the 2013 agreement when he announced that Turkey was planning to start exploration work in the eastern Mediterranean soon.

Egypt raps Turkish comments on EEZ delimitation with Cyprus - CYPRUS MAIL

FEBRUARY 7, 2018

No party can question the legitimacy of the delimitation agreement between Egypt and Cyprus and any effort to undermine Egyptian sovereignty in its exclusive economic zone is dismissed and will be addressed, the Egyptian foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

In a statement in response to recent comments by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu questioning the correctness of the delimitation of the exclusive economic zones of Cyprus and Egypt, Spokesman for the Egyptian foreign ministry Ahmad Abu Zeit said, “no party could question the legitimacy of the agreement given that it is in line with the regulations of international law and has been submitted to the United Nations”.

Replying to questions, Abu Zeit warned that any effort to undermine the sovereign rights of Egypt in the region is considered to be rejected and will be addressed.

Are Eni and Total at the precipice of a giant gas discovery in Cyprus? - ENTERPRISE

Wednesday, 7 February 2018

Are Eni and Total at the precipice of a giant gas discovery in Cyprus? Reports have begun to emerge in the Israeli and Cypriot press this week that Eni and Total are on the brink of a major gas discovery at the Calypso reservoir in Block 6 off the coast in Cyprus. The find is reported to be 6-8.1 tcf, according to Israeli daily Globes. However, Cypriot Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis said, “The findings are encouraging, but we need more time for analysis in order to provide final confirmation that there is a gas discovery. Meanwhile, I am unwilling to talk about quantities or any other matter.” The final results of the drilling are expected to be published within a few days. Lakkotrypis added that the geologic structure of the sea bottom at Calypso was similar to that of Egypt’s Zohr discovery. Globes notes that this doesn’t bode well for Israel’s Leviathan field, which remains without any contract to develop it.

Lebanon’s oil and gas sector: A roadmap for 2018 - MESP / EXECUTIVE MAGAZINE

February 6, 2018 / Lebanon

At the end of January, Lebanon signed its first exploration & production agreements (EPA) with a consortium of companies composed of France’s Total (as operator), Italy’s Eni, and Russia’s Novatek. The consortium had placed two separate bids on October 12, 2017, the only ones received in Lebanon’s first offshore licensing round, for Block 4 and Block 9. With the contracts signed, Lebanon can now look forward to the exploration phase. The consortium has committed to drill two wells in 2019, one in each block. But what can Lebanon expect prior to drilling?

EIB approves 1.5 bln euro loan for TAP gas pipeline - REUTERS

FEBRUARY 6, 2018 / 7:39 PM
Alissa de Carbonnel, Editing by Jane Merriman

BRUSSELS, Feb 6 (Reuters) - The European Investment Bank on Tuesday approved a 1.5 billion euro loan for the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), part of a $40 billion project to bring new gas supplies to Europe.

The European Union is trying to reduce its dependence on Russian gas by developing the so-called Southern Gas Corridor which is expected to bring around 16 billion cubic metres of gas per year to Europe by 2020.

The gas would come from the Shah Deniz 2 field in Azerbaijan via several routes, including the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) to Greece, Albania and Italy.

TAP is slated to bring up to 10 billion cubic metres of gas to Italy from Shah Deniz 2 - one of the world’s largest gas fields developed by a BP-led consortium.

EIB Vice President Andrew McDowell told Reuters the TAP project would help to offset declining European production, provide a diversified source of gas and displace coal-fired power generation in central and south eastern Europe.

Delek Shares Tumble on Report That Israel-Turkey Gas-export Deal Is in Jeopardy - HAARETZ

TheMarker Feb 06, 2018 1:10 AM

Eran Azran

Shares of Yitzhak Tshuva’s Delek Group tumbled Monday after Bloomberg News reported that plans to develop an undersea pipeline to deliver Israeli natural gas to Turkey looked increasingly troubled amid fraying bilateral relations. Israel has shifted its priorities to exporting to Egypt and Europe, markets with their own political problems or high costs, Bloomberg said, citing two unnamed sources. Turkish pipeline company Botas canceled a December visit to Israel, Bloomberg said. None of the companies involved would comment. 

In another setback for Delek, Moody’s lowered the outlook for the B3-rated debt held by Ithaca, Delek’s wholly owned North Sea energy company, to Negative. Moody’s said it was concerned about the low output rate at Ithaca’s Stella field, the cash flow from which is supposed to help repay the company’s $750 million in debt and reduce its leveraging. Shares of Delek, which owns 45.3% of Israel’s giant Leviathan gas field, finished down 7.45% at 542 shekels ($156.97).

EGAS to issue natural gas exploration tender in 11 blocks before June - ENTERPRISE

Egypt's 2015 Eastern Mediterranean (Onshore & Offshore) Bid Round Results

Tuesday, 6 February 2018

The Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) is planning on issuing natural gas exploration tenders in 11 offshore and onshore blocks before June, an unnamed EGAS source tells Al Shorouk. 

EGAS Chairman Osama El Bakly had previously announced the company’s plans to have a bid round for oil and gas exploration in east Mediterranean and onshore Delta blocks in 1H2018, but had not disclosed the number of areas up for exploration.

Fraying Israel-Turkey Ties Threaten Planned Gas Venture - BLOOMBERG

February 5, 2018, 5:49 PM GMT+2Yaacov Benmeleh and David Wainer

• Israeli companies said to shift deal focus to Egypt, Europe
• Erdogan’s public condemnations have angered Israeli officials

A U.S.-backed initiative to build an undersea natural gas pipeline between Israel and Turkey looks increasingly troubled as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan escalates his public denunciations of the Jewish state.

Israel has shifted its priorities to exporting to Egypt and other markets because of the growing discord with Turkey, according to two people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the issue is sensitive. Efforts to reach governmental understandings with Turkey continue but the pace of talks has fallen off sharply, one of them said.

EBRD to loan SOPC USD 200 mn - ENTERPRISE

Monday, 5 February 2018

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is provisioning a USD 200 mn loan to the Suez Oil Processing Company (SOPC) “to finance a package of energy efficiency investments and other refurbishments and installations at the Suez refinery,” according to the EBRD project website. 

The loan is classified as a sovereign loan to Egypt and will be brought before the board for a vote on 28 March. A technical cooperation fund will allocate EUR 83k to environmental and feasibility studies.

2 million Iraqi oil barrels to arrive in Egypt on Feb. 15 - EGYPT TODAY

CAIRO – Mon., 5 February 2018

The first 2 million-barrel crude oil shipment coming from Iraq will arrive in Egypt’s capital of Cairo, on February 15.

The crude oil shipment left Iraqi ports days ago and the ships are on their way to Cairo, according to an Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) source.

In January, Egypt renewed a contract to import 12 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil over the coming year, an official at EGPC stated.

The official, who declined to be named, said that six 2-million barrel cargoes of crude would be supplied over the course of a year, starting this month.

The Iraqi deal was originally agreed last April with the first shipment arriving in May. Egypt has gone from exporting energy to being a net importer as domestic output has failed to keep pace with rising demand.

Egypt to accelerate Zohr gas field development, to be completed one year ahead of schedule - ENERGY EGYPT / AHRAM ONLINE / ENTERPRISE

February 4, 2018

Egypt to complete development on Zohr one year ahead of schedule: Egypt will complete the development of the Zohr gasfield at the beginning of 2019, instead of the end of the year, Oil Minister Tarek El Molla said on Thursday, according to Reuters. Egypt had been speeding up the development of the giant gasfield, with early phase production commencing ahead of schedule last December. Speedy development of the field had helped Egypt move forward its plans to cut imports of LNG from late 2018 to July.

Major Cypriot offshore gas field discovered - report - GLOBES

4 Feb, 2018 13:45
Sonia Gorodeisky

The Calypso field (TEKMOR Note: IF proven), containing an estimated 170-230 BCM, will make it even more difficult for the Leviathan partners to sign export deals.

The Cypriot media has reported the discovery of a major natural gas field in Cypriot economic waters, 75 kilometers off the island's southern coast. The reservoir reportedly contains 170-230 BMC of gas, 70% as much as the Tamar reservoir in Israel's territorial waters. The reservoir, which is located in bloc 6 and is called Calypso, will be developed by a European consortium composed of Italian company ENI and French company Total SA.

According to the reports, the drilling results confirmed "sufficient and encouraging signs" of a natural gas field. Cypriot Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis said, "The findings are encouraging, but we need more time for analysis in order to provide final confirmation that there is a gas discovery. Meanwhile, I am unwilling to talk about quantities or any other matter." The final results of the drilling are expected to be published within a few days. Lakkotrypis added that the geologic structure of the sea bottom at Calypso was similar to that of Egypt's Zohr discovery.