Eastern Med countries agree to move ahead with gas forum - THE ARAB WEEKLY

Saturday 27/JULY/2019

CAIRO - Energy ministers from the founding countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum agreed to complete the basic structure of the group and enhance cooperation to promote the exploitation of natural gas reserves in the region.

During a meeting July 25 in Cairo, energy ministers of Egypt, Cyprus, Greece, Israel, Italy, the Palestinian territories and a representative of the energy minister of Jordan said they would form a committee to elevate the forum to the level of an international organisation that respects the rights of its members to their natural resources.

The meeting of the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF) founders was almost six months after the forum was declared. EMGF is a new player on the international natural gas scene, deriving its force from numerous gas finds in the region in recent years.

The forum is an expression of the changing face of the region, in which political and military rivalries and animosities are overshadowed by economic interests, even as some regional countries, including Turkey, Lebanon and Syria, are yet to join.

Egypt, U.S. sign deal to boost oil, gas cooperation - XINHUA

2019-07-27 01:56:41|Editor: Mu Xuequan

CAIRO, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Egypt and the United States signed on Friday a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to boost bilateral cooperation in the oil and gas industry.

The MoU was signed in Cairo by Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tareq al-Molla and U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, according to a statement released by the Egyptian Petroleum Ministry.

The agreement is meant to facilitate the exchange of technical information, consultancy services and the transfer of technology in the fields of oil and gas exploration, production and refining, as well as petrochemicals, the statement said.

U.S. says Turkey's exploration attempt in Cypriot waters discussed at Egypt gas forum - NASDAQ / REUTERS

Rick Perry meeting his Egyptian counterpart Tarek El-Molla 

July 25, 2019, 12:34:00 PM EDT

Cairo, July 25 (Reuters) - U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry told reporters on Thursday that countries participating in a gas forum in Egypt have discussed Turkey's exploration attempt in Cypriot territorial waters.

Perry, who was speaking on the sidelines of The Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum in Cairo, did not elaborate. The United Sates participates in the forum as an observer.

EU member Cyprus has discovered natural gas in areas off the south of the island, though nothing has been extracted. Turkey disputes the rights of Cyprus to explore for gas, sending drill ships of its own to stake a claim around the island.

Nicosia rejects the claim, saying that the assertion is not only inconsistent with international law, but that Turkey would not accept any international dispute settlement mechanism where its claims could be put to the test.

Cyprus was divided in 1974 after a Turkish invasion triggered by a brief Greek-inspired coup. Several peacemaking efforts have failed and the discovery of offshore resources has complicated the negotiations.

Israel to begin gas exports to Egypt within four months: Minister - AL ARABIYA / REUTERS

Wednesday, 24 July 2019, KSA 14:11 - GMT 11:11

Israel will begin natural gas exports to Egypt within four months, Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz told Reuters on Wednesday.

He also said that a deal to buy stakes in the East Mediterranean Gas Company’s pipeline between the two countries will be completed “within weeks” and that more connections could be built between them.

Steinitz also said that more economic pressure should be applied on Iran, and that it “must be stopped.”

Qatargas Ships 1st Q-Flex LNG Cargo to Greek Revithoussa Terminal - WORLD MARITIME NEWS

Qatargas Ships 1st Q-Flex LNG Cargo to Greek Revithoussa

July 23, 2019

Doha-based liquefied natural gas company Qatargas has delivered the first LNG cargo on a Q-Flex vessel to Greece’s Revithoussa LNG Terminal.

This is the first time that a Q-Flex LNG vessel has called at the terminal ever since it underwent an expansion drive late last year, Qatargas said.

The cargo, which was loaded at the Ras Laffan Terminal in Qatar on July 3, 2019, arrived at the Revithoussa Terminal on board the 216,224 cbm Al Gharrafa on July 20, 2019.

The Q-Flex cargo is part of a multi-port delivery executed by Qatargas. It is being undertaken in cooperation with the European utility Engie, which will see the second cargo being delivered at the Cartagena LNG terminal in Spain later this month.

“This significant delivery is aligned with Qatargas’ strategy to continue growing the ever increasing number of terminals that our Q-Flex and Q-Max vessels can deliver into,” Khalid bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chief Executive Officer of Qatargas, commented.

Turkey’s “Fatih” drillship left without support after international companies withdraw - IN CYPRUS

July 23, 2019 at 11:34am
JONATHAN SHKURKO

Turkey’s drillship “Fatih”, currently located west of Paphos, was left without the specialised technical support necessary to conduct its operations, following the complete withdrawal of the last two international companies that had remained partly in support of its illegal activities.

According to Philelefteros sources, the last two specialized companies left on Friday, whereas other international companies decided to withdraw their support as soon as “Faith” started its illegal drilling operations.

The two companies had already recalled the majority of their staff from the operation, especially those who held European citizenship.

First exploitation licences set to be issued for Cyprus EEZ - CYPRUS MAIL

July 21, 2019

Katy Turner

The Council of Ministers is expected issue exploitation licences for the Aphrodite field, Energy Minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis said on Sunday.

“Regarding the agreements with Total and Eni, we are currently working on the legal details and they are expected to be brought before the Council of Ministers in the coming days for the relevant decisions,” he said.

As far as the Aphrodite field is concerned he said, “we are in negotiations with the consortium to come up with a jointly acceptable plan for development and production, which must be submitted to the Council of Ministers to issue exploitation licences for the Aphrodite field, marking the first time that such licences will be issued for the Cyprus EEZ (Excusive Economic Zone)”.

This is the third type of licence that is issued to interested companies. The first, a prospecting licence allows the geological evaluation of an area, while the second, an exploration licence allows for exploratory drilling to take place. If a discovery is made, the licensee then has the right be granted an exploitation licence.

Red Sea gas scramblers have until mid-September to submit bids to Egypt’s GANOPE - ENTERPRISE

Monday, 22 July 2019

Scramblers have until mid-September to submit bids for Red Sea exploration: The South Valley Egyptian Petroleum Holding Company (Ganope) has extended to mid-September the deadline for submitting bids in its tender for 10 oil and gas exploration blocks off the Red Sea, an unnamed Oil Ministry official said. The deadline, which was previously set for early August, was extended to give more companies a chance to join in.

Background: Ganope launched the tender last March for 10 oil and gas exploration blocks under new production sharing contracts. The new terms give producers a larger share of the output and allow them to sell their share to non-government entities of their choosing, provided they obtain approvals from each of Ganope, EGAS, and the EGPC.

Egypt Invests EGP 43 B in Assiut Oil Projects - EGYPT TODAY

Sunday, 21st July 2019

Investments in oil production and refining projects in Assiut total EGP 43 billion, sources in the Ministry of Petroleum told Egypt Today.

Projects include establishing a refining unit for producing high-octane gasoline, as well as a complex for the production of gasoline and diesel.

The ministry is building a number of new refining projects in Upper Egypt to meet the demand for petroleum products.

Egypt is carrying out six refining megaprojects with around $9 billion investments, as a part of the oil and gas sector’s Modernization Project, Minister of Petroleum Tarek El Molla previously stated.

In May, El Molla reviewed the situation of the mazut hydro-cracking complex at the Assiut National Oil Processing Company (ANOPC). The $1.9-billion project will use 2.5 million tons of mazut to produce higher-value products like diesel, naphtha, and butane.