ENERGY: Energean calls out Cyprus on its gas supply policy - FINANCIAL MIRROR

13 October, 2018

Greek oil and gas firm Energean has upped the ante by saying it can deliver more competitive gas prices to Cyprus than the tender procedure Nicosia is going through.

“Energean has submitted a proposal to the Cypriot Government to supply natural gas to the country in the 1st quarter of 2021 at no upfront cost to the Cypriot citizens at a very competitive gas price,” the company said in a statement.

“Energean always respects the rules and regulations of every country it operates in and has obviously confirmed its option to supply natural Gas to Cyprus in accordance with the proposal made,” it added.

According to sources, Energean is unhappy that it is excluded from a tender to supply Cyprus with gas because the bids relate to LNG infrastructure only.

Those same sources argue that the project will be much more expensive compared to gas supplied through a pipeline.

Eni CEO says new agreement with Libya’s NOC would increase oil production efficiency - THE LIBYA OBSERVER

October 13, 2018 - 14:19
Safa Alharathy

The CEO of the Italian energy company Eni Claudio Descalzi said that the expansion of production plans in Libya in 2019 is important for both sides in terms of diversification of energy sources.

Descalzi explained in a press statement that these plans would turn the situation round in Libya after 8 years of freezing of investments, adding that this step would contribute to creating jobs and greater development in the country.

Discalzi pointed out that the agreement on exploration and sharing of production, signed between the National Oil Corporation (NOC), ENI, and BP, involves about fifty four thousand square kilometres in the sea and on land.

Beyond the Southern Gas Corridor: Interconnecting Central/East Europe and the Balkans? - NAOC

October 12, 2018October 12, 2018 

Mariana Liakopoulou

Following the August signing of the Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea, the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC), a large-scale gas pipeline project that aspires to connect the region’s copious hydrocarbon resources to the European markets, has been drawn back into international debate.

The present article illuminates how the SGC enhances the potential for cross-border interconnectivity amongst EU member-states in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the Balkans, as well as amongst the Energy Community contracting parties. The Energy Community is an initiative introduced at the onset of the twenty-first century by the EU and several third countries in its southeastern vicinity, focusing on the extension of the EU’s existing rules to aspirants for membership.

Cyprus Tenders For LNG Import Terminal - MEES

Click on image, Open in new tab, go to new tab & click again.

Greece and Egypt moving closer to EEZ agreement - KATHIMERINI

11.10.2018 : 16:42

Vassilis Nedos

The much-discussed delineation of the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of Greece and Egypt was on the table at a trilateral meeting between Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades on the island of Crete on Wednesday.

Speaking after the meeting, the sixth between the three leaders, Tsipras said that “technical details” remain before Greece and Egypt wrap up talks on the issue that began three years ago.

Government sources said that Tsipras and Sisi agreed that this should happen by the end of the year.

Global Investment Firms Show Interest in Funding Cyprus Gas Pipe - BLOOMBERG

October 10, 2018, 10:27 AM GMT+3
Yaacov Benmeleh

• Four financial firms in contact with Cyprus govt on pipeline
• Pipe would transport Cyprus gas to Shell’s LNG plant in Egypt

Four major investment firms expressed interest in financing the construction of a pipeline that would transport natural gas from Cyprus to Egypt, according to a Cypriot official involved in the country’s energy sector.

The banks and investment houses asked the Cypriot government for more information on the progress of the Aphrodite reservoir, whose gas Royal Dutch Shell Plc is considering buying for its facility in Egypt, said Sofronis Papageorgiou, head of commercial affairs at the Cypriot embassy in Israel. He declined to disclose the names of the firms.

The Aphrodite field has sat undeveloped since its discovery in 2011, the first in Cypriot waters, but companies and regional governments are working to change that. Last month, Egypt and Cyprus signed an inter-governmental agreement to facilitate commercial deals, while the owners of the gas pool -- Shell, Texas-based Noble Energy Inc. and Israel’s Delek Drilling LP -- continue to hammer out a contract to service the liquefied natural gas plant in Egypt called Idku.

Greece, Egypt back Cyprus gas exploration - THE WASHINGTON POST / ASSOCIATED PRESS

October 10 at 12:55 PMDerek Gatopoulos and Menelaos Hadjicostis

ATHENS, Greece — The leaders of Greece and Egypt on Wednesday backed efforts by regional ally Cyprus to exploit off-shore gas deposits, despite strong objection from Turkey.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras hosted a meeting Wednesday with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades on the island of Crete. The talks were the sixth meeting between the three leaders aimed at forming an energy-based alliance in the east Mediterranean.

U.S. energy giant ExxonMobil will search for natural gas off the coast of Cyprus by the end of the year, a senior executive said last week.

“We have clearly expressed our support for Cyprus in its efforts to capitalize on the sovereign rights deriving from International Law regarding (offshore deposits) and to make progress in their exploitation,” said Tsipras.

DEFA issues tender for construction of LNG import terminal - HYDROCARBON ENGINEERING

09 October 2018

The state natural gas company of Cyprus, DEFA, has issued a tender for the development of a facility for the import, storage and regasification of LNG at Vasilikos Bay near Lemesos.

The tender was made on behalf of the Natural Gas Infrastructure Co. Ltd (ETYFA).

Following the completion of a feasibility study in 2016, the government of Cyprus decided to proceed with the development.

The government requires the completion of the new LNG import terminal by 30 November 2020.

The LNG Terminal will include a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), a jetty for mooring the FSRU, a jetty borne gas pipeline and related infrastructure. The LNG terminal has secured a funding of 40% of the CAPEX, up to €101 million, as a grant from the EU under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) financial instruments.

Egypt to Receive First Israeli Gas as Early as March - BLOOMBERG

October 8, 2018, 12:44 PM GMT+3Mirette Magdy

• Egyptian pipeline partner says to hit capacity in three years
• East Gas says its pipeline via Jordan can act as backup

Egypt will begin importing natural gas from Israel under a $15 billion deal as early as March if an undersea pipeline connecting the Mediterranean neighbors is found to be in good condition, moving the country closer to its goal of becoming an energy-exporting hub.

Mohammed Shoeib, chief executive officer of East Gas Co., a major Egyptian partner in the pipeline, said supplies would begin at 100 million standard cubic feet of gas per day in the first quarter of 2019 and gradually rise to a maximum of 700 million scf a day.

“We expect the pipeline is in good condition,” he told Bloomberg in an interview. “We aim to reach the pipeline’s full capacity or maximum flow rate within three years.”

Eni to acquire half of BP's Libya oil and gas assets - REUTERS

London, OCTOBER 8, 2018 / 7:00 PM
Ahmad Ghaddar, Ron Bousso

Italy’s Eni has agreed to buy half of BP’s 85 percent stake in a Libyan oil and gas license with the aim of resuming exploration next year, the companies said on Monday.

Eni will acquire the 42.5 percent stake and become the operator of the exploration and production sharing agreement (EPSA) in Libya, in which the Libyan Investment Authority holds the remaining 15 percent, the companies said in a statement.

The companies, along with state-owned National Oil Corp (NOC), signed a letter of intent in London on Monday paving the way for the final deal. They did not disclose financial terms of the transaction.

NOC chairman Mustafa Sanalla said the agreement showed renewed confidence in the war-torn country’s oil and gas sector.

“This agreement is a clear signal and recognition by the market of the opportunities Libya has to offer and will only serve to strengthen our production outlook,” he said.

BP Chief Executive Officer Bob Dudley hailed the deal as an important step “towards returning to our work in Libya”.

Eni to increase its investments in Zohr to USD 16 bn - ENTERPRISE

Monday, 8 October 2018

Italy’s Eni plans to increase its investments in the Zohr gas field to USD 16 bn, up from USD 12 bn, by the time it completes the field’s development in July 2019, according to an unnamed source. 

Production from the field reached 2 bcf/d last month and is expected to plateau at 2.7 bcf/d next year.

Good reasons why energy giants are eyeing the East Med - CYPRUS MAIL

October 7, 2018 

Charles Ellinas

Interest in the East Med has increased during the last ten years with the discovery of major gas fields such as Tamar, Leviathan and more recently the giant Zohr field in Egypt. These have opened up major opportunities for new discoveries, but also for oil and gas investments in the region.

This was confirmed at Gastech 2018 in Barcelona, the world’s largest gas conference, by Lapo Pistelli, head of international affairs at ENI, Walid Nasr, the chairman of the Lebanese Petroleum Authority (LPA) and myself.