Aphrodite low on list of Chevron’s gas plans for East Med - CYPRUS MAIL

March 6, 2023

Dr. Charles Ellinas

The importance of the East Med to Chevron’s gas plans was made clear at the company’s ‘2022 4Q Earnings Conference Call’ on January 27 and subsequently at its ‘Investor Presentation’ on February 28. Mike Wirth, Chevron’s CEO, confirmed that he considers the region to be of “high priority”.

He specifically referred to the $673 million ‘Final Investment Decision’ (FID) taken in December 2022 to expand Tamar gasfield production capacity in Israel from 11billion cubic metres per year (bcm/yr) to 16bcm/yr, expected to come online in early 2025. This will enable Tamar to meet Israel’s growing domestic demand and increase gas deliveries to Egypt.

Following the Tamar FID, Chevron and its partners approved close to $100m budget for the development of Phase 1B of the Leviathan gasfield. This includes pre-FEED engineering for field expansion, including construction of a 4.6million tonnes/yr floating LNG (FLNG) facility, three years after FID. The expansion will increase production capacity to 21bcm/yr from 12bcm/yr now.

The fifteenth Zohr well is expected to go online in March - ENTERPRISE

Tuesday, 25 February 2020

Italy’s Eni will begin commercial operations on the Zohr natural gas field’s 15th well next month, Oil Minister Tarek El Molla said, according to the local press. 

The new well will put the field on track to reaching maximum production capacity this year. 

Production at the Zohr field inched up to 2.7 bcf/d last November with the connection of four wells in the field’s southern region.

First well from Baltim South West field linked to Egypt’s national grid - ENTERPRISE

Thursday, 12 September 2019

Italy’s Eni has linked the first well in its Baltim South West natural gas field to the national grid, an EGAS source said. 

The well has a production capacity of 50 mcf/d and is the first of six wells, which will bring the field’s total production to 500 mcf/d once developed during the current fiscal year.

Production platform for Leviathan, Israel’s largest gas field, to arrive in days - THE TIMES OF ISRAEL

SEPTEMBER 4, 2019 : 2:17 pm

SHOSHANNA SOLOMON

The production platform for the massive Leviathan natural gas field will be arriving in Israel within days, ahead of the start of production for the nation’s largest energy project later this year.

The production decks, comprising five units, are expected to arrive off the Israeli coast in the coming days on four barges, the partners in the field said on Wednesday.


A large offshore crane vessel — the world’s largest — will also be arriving to install the topside decks of the Leviathan platform, which will be set up 10 kilometers off the coast, at a water depth of 86 meters.

The topside decks are the surface decks of the platform, including all the equipment for drilling, production and processing, a helipad, work areas, and living quarters for those who will work on the rig. Setting up the decks will take some four weeks, the statement said.

Eni finishes drilling ninth well in Zohr field - ENTERPRISE

Wednesday, 21 November 2018

Italy’s Eni has completed drilling work on Zohr’s ninth deepwater well at a cost of USD 300 mn, according to an industry source. Early tests put initial production levels at 150 mcf/d.

The well was closed after the company finished drilling due lack of capacity at the treatment plant, but will enter production by the end of the year once the sixth gas treatment plant is completed. 

Production from the ninth well will increase Eni’s Zohr production to 2.25 bcf/d. Zohr’s total output will reportedly reach 2.95 bcf/d by the time the field’s development is complete in July 2019. 

Eni had previously estimated the field’s final output would reach 2.7 bcf/d.

Italy's Eni boosts output at Egypt's Zohr gas field to 57 million cu m/d - PLATTS

10 Sep 2018 | 10:17 UTC
Author: Stuart Elliott; Editor: Jon Fox

London — Italy's Eni has increased production at its supergiant Zohr field offshore Egypt to 2 Bcf/d (57 million cu m/d) following the startup of the project's fifth production unit.

Zohr started production in December 2017 -- just 28 months after its discovery -- and is on track to reach plateau production of 2.7 Bcf/d next year.

The production peak -- the equivalent of almost 29 Bcm/year -- would represent more than half of Egypt's current gas demand of around 52 Bcm.

Egypt -- which until recently was a fairly stable exporter of both LNG and pipeline gas -- began importing LNG in April 2015 to fill a growing supply-demand gap caused by a major slowdown in domestic gas development.

But with the startup of Zohr and other gas fields in Egypt, the country expects to halt LNG imports by the end of 2018 and become an exporter of gas again in 2019.

"Zohr [...] is playing a fundamental role in supporting Egypt's independence from LNG imports," Eni said.

Zohr is the largest deepwater gas field offshore Egypt, and the biggest discovered to date in the Mediterranean with an estimated 850 Bcm (30 Tcf) of reserves.

It is located within the offshore Shorouk block 190km north of Port Said.

Eni holds a 50% stake in the block together with Russia's Rosneft (30%), BP (10%) and the UAE's Mubadala Petroleum (10%).

ENI Finalizes Lucrative Shorouk Stake Sale - PETROLEUM AFRICA

Thursday, June 21, 2018

ENI finalized the sale of a 10% stake in its Shorouk concession to Mubadala Petroleum, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company. The Shorouk concession is located offshore Egypt, holding the massive Zohr gas field.

Following a record start-up less than two and a half years from discovery, the project is now in its ramp-up phase with the aim of reaching 2 Bcf/d of total installed treatment capacity by the end of the year, and a production plateau of 2.7 Bcf/d by the end of 2019.

Claudio Descalzi, ENI CEO said: “We welcome today’s announcement with Mubadala Petroleum, a strong and reliable partner with whom we look forward to working with. Working alongside significant partners such as Mubadala Petroleum, BP and Rosneft is a further boost for the development of Zohr and underlines the quality of the asset, which will play a fundamental role in supporting Egypt’s goal of achieving energy independence.”

Nooros field’s 13th well comes online, adding 90 mcf/d of production - ENTERPRISE

Wednesday, 14 March 2018

The 13th well of the Nooros gas field has come online, bringing an additional 90 mcf/d to the national grid. This would bring the field’s total production to 1.15 bcf/d, according to a report by Eni and EGPC JV Belayim Petroleum Company (Petrobel), Al Masry Al Youm reports. 

The field’s 14th well is underway, which is expected to raise total production capacity to 1.2 bcf/d.

Egypt's gas transmission strategy - PETROLEUM ECONOMIST

10 January 2018

Gerald Butt

With natural gas from the super-giant Zohr field now flowing ashore, plans are in place to make distribution of the fuel more efficient and to expand wind power

For the Egyptian government, 20 December 2017 was a red-letter day. It was when Eni produced first gas from the Zohr field 190km (118 miles) from the coast. Zohr is by far the biggest natural gas discovery in the Eastern Mediterranean, with estimated reserves of 30 trillion cubic feet. The arrival of Zohr gas ashore—at an initial rate of 350m cubic feet a day, rising to 1.2bn cf/d under Phase 1—is a major factor in the Egyptian government's decision to phase out liquefied natural gas imports during the course of this year and prepare for the restart of exports.

But the priority for the Egyptian authorities is to make sure that domestic demand for gas is satisfied—in particular for power generation. Nothing is more calculated to stoke social unrest than lengthy power cuts in Cairo and other overcrowded cities during the stiflingly hot summer months.

Phase One Drilling Complete on Zohr - PETROLEUM AFRICA

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

First flows from the Zohr field off the coast of Egypt have moved a step closer as the operator, ENI, has completed drilling work on all eight wells in the first phase of the development.

ENI, who is partnered with BP and Rosneft on the Shorouk Concession where the Zohr field is located, is currently focusing on setting up the pipeline that will transport the gas for processing.

Natural gas production from Zohr field is expected to reach its peak in 2020, at a rate of 2.7 Bcf/d.

PetroZenima Connects Drilled Wells to Production Platforms - EGYPT OIL & GAS

Sunday, 26th March 2017

An official source at South Abu Zenima Petroleum Company (PetroZenima) stated exclusively to Egypt Oil&Gas that the company is currently implementing the plan of connecting drilled wells to production platforms.

The source added that the company has drilled eight wells in the 39km Mozhel field in the Gulf of Suez concession area.

The first and second wells were connected and began producing from 500b/d to 800b/d of oil. Additionally, the company is working on the reform of the fourth well.

Furthermore, PetroZenima is connecting the third and fifth wells to production platforms at a cost of $6m. The two wells are planned to be used to increase the field’s production. The rest of the wells will be connected soon to likely increase output and reserves of crude oil.

The source also mentioned that the company is currently conducting a seismic survey of a new exploratory well (SAZ Concession, owned by NPC Egypt) near Mozhel field with $17m of investments. 

TechnipFMC on for Leviathan - UPSTREAM

24 Mar 2017 10:15 GMT
Iain Esau

Contractor heavily tipped to take major pipeline installation contract

Paris and New York-listed TechnipFMC is the front-runner to secure a major pipeline installation contract for Noble Energy’s initial $3.75-billion Leviathan project off Israel.

Industry sources said the super-contractor has beaten off rival bids from Subsea 7 and Allseas, among others, to secure pole position in the eyes of the US independent.

“We think they have got Leviathan,” said a project watcher.

Another market player added: “It’s TechnipFMC for Leviathan.”

TechnipFMC’s pipelay contract is expected to cover a pair of 117-kilometre pipelines taking gas and condensate, separately, to a big fixed platform installed on Israel’s continental shelf, about 10 kilometres off the coast.

BP to process 600 mcf/d of gas from WND using Shell’s Burullus treatment plant - ENTERPRISE / AL BORSA

Monday, 6 March 2017

BP is bringing 600 mcf/d of gas from West Nile Delta (WND) project’s Taurus and Libra fields in North Alexandria onstream and will process them at Shell’s Burullus gas treatment plant by the end of April, an unnamed source told Al Borsa.

The sources say Shell will charge BP USD 0.3 per mcf of gas processed in its plant and that BP is now completing a pipeline to link the Burullus plant with the gas fields. Production output from West Nile Delta (WND) project’s five fields will increase gradually to 1.25 mcf/d by end of 2019.

Pharaonic Petroleum plans to invest $500 million in FY 2017-18 - ENERGY EGYPT / MUBASHER

January 9, 2017

Pharaonic Petroleum said its board of directors approved the estimated budget for the fiscal year 2017 – 2018.

The company stated that it plans to pump $500 million in investments if FY17/18.

Pharaonic Petroleum operates Egypt’s offshore Atoll field, which is joint venture company between Egypt state-owned Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation and BP Egypt.

BP announced the Atoll discovery in March 2015, which was estimated to 1.5 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas and 31 million barrels (mmbbl) of condensates.

Libya's oil production reaches 685,000 bpd - NOC - ECOFIN AGENCY

Monday, 02 January 2017 - 13:39
Anita Fatunji

Libya’s oil production during the weekend reached 685,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) up from around 600,000 a day last month, an official from the National Oil Corporation (NOC) revealed.

The country’s output increased following the lifting of the two-year blockade on key pipelines leading from the western fields of Sharara and El Feel.

The NOC official said output has been rising steadily from the Sharara field, which has a capacity of 330,000 bpd but did not provide any details concerning operations at El Feel, which has the capacity to produce 90,000 bpd.

Oil Ministry announces new natural gas discovery in Shell’s Alam El Shawish Western Desert concession - ENERGY EGYPT / ENTERPRISE PRESS

November 26, 2016

An Oil Ministry report on the Alam El Shawish field in the Western Desert suggests that the concession has a production capacity of 20 mcf/d and preliminary estimated reserves of 500 bcf, Al Masry Al Youm reported. The well is operated by Royal Dutch Shell JV Badr El Din Petroleum (Bapetco). Production is expected to rise to 60 mcf/d when drilling is completed.

The Oil Ministry report says the results have encouraged Shell to increase drilling rigs from two to four. Shell have agreed to drill nine discovery wells in 2017 that could be increased depending on seismic scans due in 1Q2017, the report adds. We had noted the discovery back in September, when Aidan Murphy, chairman and CEO of Shell Egypt, said then that it could be one of the biggest in the Western Desert.

Eni commences drilling of seventh well on Zohr gas field – El-Molla - ECOFIN AGENCY

Monday, 07 November 2016 - 08:52Anita Fatunji

(Ecofin Agency) - Egyptian Oil Minister, Tarek El-Molla (photo), has announced that following the completion of the sixth well the Zohr gas field, Italian Eni has commenced the drilling of the seventh well, Zohr-7. The minister declared this during the regular committee meeting set up to assess the execution phases of the Zohr field project development.

El-Molla added that the Zohr-7 is the last well in the production plan which targets gas from Zohr with a capacity estimated at 1bcfpd by the end of 2017 and expected to increase to 2.7bcfpd before 2019 ending, Amwal-al-ghad news reports.

Eni is investing $3.5 to 4 billion to develop the Zohr natural gas production processing plant at a capacity of 2.7 Bcfpd of gas and intends to connect 900 Mmcfpd of gas to the national grid by the end of 2017 or Q1 of 2018.

EGPC, Kuwait Energy sign agreement on Iraq's Siba gas field - NATURAL GAS WORLD

October 28th, 2016 8:35amShardul Sharma

Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation has inked an agreement with Kuwait Energy to buy stake in Siba gas field in Iraq’s Basra region, the Egyptian oil ministry said October 26. The field has reserves of 555bn ft³ of natural gas and 37mn barrels of condensate.

The ministry stated that EGPC will have a 15% interest in the field. It expects production to be 70mn ft³/d by 2017 which is likely to rise to 100-150mn ft³/d. Egyptian Petrojet will be the general contractor of the field development project through carrying out all the executive and engineering works of the project at costs of $200mn.

This is the second partnership between the two sides outside Egypt. Kuwait Energy farmed out a10% working interest in Block 9 in southern Iraq to EGPC and now has 60%.

BP signs three concession amendments with Egypt -statement - REUTERS

Tue Sep 27, 2016 12:08pm GMTReporting by Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Lin Noueihed

CAIRO, Sept 27 (Reuters) - BP has signed amendments to the Temsah, Ras El Barr and Nile Delta Offshore concessions in Egypt, allowing for the development of the Nooros field, the company said on Tuesday.

"BP is proud to progress the acceleration of its drilling activities in the three concession areas. The conclusion of these amendments was a critical milestone that allowed the discovery and fast track development of the Nooros field," Hesham Mekawi, BP's North Africa chief said in a statement.

Eni boosts Nooros production to 128,000 boed just 13 months after discovery - WORLD OIL

9/12/2016

MILAN -- Output from Egypt’s Nooros field has reached 128,000 boed (700 MMcfgd) just 13 months after its discovery, Eni said in a statement announcing the production landmark.

The field is currently producing from seven wells; however, with the drilling of additional wells, the field is expected to reach its maximum production capacity of about 160,000 boed in the spring of 2017.

"This record-setting production represents an important milestone achieved just 13 months after the discovery and ahead of schedule thanks to the success of the last exploration wells drilled in the area of ​​Nidoco and the drilling of new development wells," Eni said in a statement.

Nooros field, in the Nile Delta offshore, was discovered in July 2015 and brought on-stream that September.