Cyprus gas could fuel Egypt’s LNG comeback - CYPRUS MAIL

Friday 28 August | 14:53

Souzana Psara

Egypt’s gas sector is running short of domestic supplies just as Cyprus prepares to become a producer, with the recently approved Kronos project offering benefits to both countries and Europe, according to an OilPrice report.

Natalia Katona said that the project offers a three-way bargain, with up to 2.8 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) a year expected from 2028. Cyprus gains an export route it cannot economically build alone, Egypt secures feedstock for infrastructure increasingly constrained by falling domestic production, and Europe gains another non-Russian source. However, the report cautions that technical, commercial and geopolitical risks could still derail the emerging corridor.

Egypt’s need for new gas sources is becoming urgent. Natural gas production fell 7 per cent year on year to 109.3m cubic metres a day in the second quarter of 2026, extending a decline that began after national output peaked in 2021. The deterioration remains concentrated in the offshore Mediterranean, while stronger production in the onshore Western Desert has been insufficient to reverse the trend.

Carlyle Group Plans Significant Investments in Egypt’s Oil and Gas - OILPRICE.com

Jun 27, 2024, 5:00 AM CDT

Tsvetana Paraskova

Investment firm Carlyle Group plans to make significant investments in Egypt’s oil and gas industry to boost domestic production and turn Egypt into an energy hub in the Mediterranean.

Executives from Carlyle met this week in Egypt with Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Tarek El Molla, to discuss the investment firm’s plans for Egypt and the Mediterranean after Carlyle announced an acquisition of assets in the region last week.

Carlyle said a week ago that it had agreed to acquire a portfolio of gas-weighted exploration and production (E&P) assets in Italy, Egypt, and Croatia from Energean plc, a London-based company focused on developing resources in the Mediterranean.

Why Greece Is Betting Big on American Gas - THE NEW YORK TIMES

May 31, 2024
Max Bearak

When a withering financial crisis forced Greece to rethink its economy a decade ago, it bet big on green power​. Since then, Greece’s energy transition has been so swift “it almost feels utopian​,”​ one Greek environmentalist said.

​Mountainous ridgelines and arid islands ​are covered in wind turbines and solar panels​ that ​today provide nearly two-thirds of the nation’s electricity.​​​

But ​now Greece​ is deliberately pivoting back toward fossil fuels, just not to burn at home. This time it’s betting that it can become one of Europe’s main suppliers of natural gas, with much of it shipped from the United States.

Both Greek and European Union subsidies have funded new pipelines that crisscross the country and connect to a brand-new import terminal that will send gas to a broad swath of Central and Eastern Europe for decades to come.

Energy Hot Potatoes The New President Will Face [GGP] - NATURAL GAS WORLD

Feb 21, 2023 9:25:am
Charles Ellinas

Cyprus has a new president. A new era is starting and that includes energy. Many serious old problems remain and are in need of urgent attention. Some energy hot potatoes that must be addressed and resolved to usher in the energy reforms and economic prosperity President-elect Nikos Christodoulides has promised.

Thousands of households are applying or planning to apply to install rooftop photovoltaics to benefit from a substantial reduction in their electricity costs. But as the DSO and TSO warned in their 20 January letter, that attracted the wrath of the outgoing energy minister, Cyprus’ outdated electrical system is at a tipping point. Without upgrading it, installing storage batteries and smart meters, the risk of instability and inevitably power cuts is getting uncomfortably close. Resolving this problem needs to be given top priority.

Greece can nearly quadruple gas export capacity by 2025 - gas grid operator - REUTERS

November 30, 2022 — 07:30 am EST
Angeliki Koutantou

ATHENS, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Greece is becoming a European gas corridor and can nearly quadruple its gas export capacity to neighbouring countries in the coming years thanks to new infrastructure under development, Maria Rita Galli, the chief executive of the country's gas grid operator DESFA said on Wednesday.

In the wake of the war in Ukraine, Greece has this year more than halved its imports of Russian gas, instead ramping up deliveries of liquefied natural gas (LNG), mainly from the United States and Egypt, to its sole LNG facility at Revithoussa near Athens.

The terminal, which the government has called "indispensible", has also helped export gas to neigbouring nations including Bulgaria, which was cut off from Russian supplies earlier this year after refusing to pay in roubles.

Botas LNG purchase tender seeks US, Russian supply - OIL & GAS EURASIA

01.NOV.2019

Turkey’s Botas issued a tender to purchase 70 cargoes of LNG (liquefied natural gas) for delivery over 2020-2023, two days after the US lifted sanctions.

The US imposed sanctions earlier in October in response to Turkey’s military offensive in northern Syria. The LNG tender will close on Nov. 8.

Heavily dependent on pipeline gas imports from Russia, Turkey is aiming to reduce Russian imports and diversify its gas sources. It has already reduced flows from Russia’s Gazprom significantly this year, while increasing LNG purchases and gas imports from Azerbaijan.

Botas buys LNG on a long-term basis from Nigeria and Algeria. The contract with Nigeria expires in 2021, while a deal with Algeria’s Sonatrach runs until late 2024. There is also a mid-term contract with Qatargas expiring next year.

The degree to which Turkey will increase its LNG imports depends however on price. The Turkish news site yenisafak.com quoted Danila Bochkarev, a senior fellow at the EastWest Institute, as saying: “LNG should be cheaper than pipeline gas in order to gain an additional share of the Turkish market.”

Mytilineos Group overtakes DEPA as major LNG importer in 2019 - KATHIMERINI

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 9, 2019

Private Greek industrial group Mytilineos has overtaken incumbent DEPA to become the country’s biggest LNG importer this year, the first time in history that an independent company has knocked the state-owned company from the top spot, ICIS an information platform on petrochemicals and specifically on energy issues, fertilisers and other commodities said in a report.

Mytilineos imported over 370,000 tonnes of LNG from January to July, or 39 percent of the national total supplies, according to LNG Edge. DEPA took 273,000 tonnes, or 29 percent.

DEPA’s market share was 92 percent last year, and has never previously fallen below 50 pct. The shift indicates the progress made in one of the last countries in the European Union to liberalize its gas market.

The market began opening back in 2005, but momentum picked up from 2018 when the retail market was fully liberalized, leaving consumers free to choose their supplier. DEPA has been losing customers ever since.

With demand from the electricity power sector as well as industrial needs in aluminium manufacturing, Mytilineos is at the forefront of the market.

Egypt achieved self sufficiency in natural gas consumption in 2018: Ministry - AHRAM ONLINE / REUTERS

Tuesday 25 Dec 2018

Egypt's Ministry of Petroleum says that the country achieved self sufficiency in natural gas consumption in September 2018 due to the gradual increase in local production and the plan to develop major gas fields in the Mediterranean.

The discovery of the large offshore fields has resulted in the halting of natural gas imports for the first time in three years.

The ministry said in a statement that 2018 witnessed remarkable achievements and improvements in the oil and gas sector.

"Natural gas has been extended to more than 1 million residential units in 72 highly-populated cities and villages across Egypt in 2018," the statement read.

"As many as 18,784 cars have been adjusted to operate with natural gas during the period between January and November 2018."

LNG tanker carrying first export cargo from Texas headed to Greece - KATHIMERINI

FRIDAY DECEMBER 14, 2018

The first shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Texas, in the United States, is headed to Greece.

The Maria Energy LNG tanker, carrying the first export cargo from Cheniere Energy’s terminal near Corpus Christi, left the facility Tuesday and is expected to arrive at the Revithoussa LNG terminal, an islet west of Athens, on December 29.

In a statement Thursday, Greece’s Energy Ministry confirmed that LNG from the US will be unloaded before the end of the year at the newly-built tank.

The ministry said the deal demonstrates efforts on both sides to strengthen cooperation on energy security. It said natural gas is required to play a transitional role in bolstering Greece’s energy security.

Greece, which relies on Russian gas for its energy needs, inaugurated the Revithoussa LNG tank in November in a bid to boost its storage capacity and advance its ambitions to become a regional energy hub.

U.S. - Greece Strategic Dialogue - Remarks by Secretary Pompeo - U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT

This afternoon, @SecPompeo delivered remarks with Greek Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs @gkatr as part of the U.S.-#Greece Strategic Dialogue at the State Department. @GreeceMFA @USEmbassyAthens @GreeceInUSA pic.twitter.com/HjrDFYKAJ8

— Department of State (@StateDept) December 13, 2018

Energean gas offer to Cyprus - CYPRUS MAIL

July 7 2018

Charles Ellinas

Greek oil and gas company Energean is seeking approval from the Cyprus government to build a pipeline from its Israeli offshore gas fields and import 0.5 to 1 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas per year to the island, Reuters news agency reported this week.

Such a deal would help Cyprus meet its obligations to switch to cleaner energy such as natural gas and renewables by 2020 if it is to avoid hefty fines by the European Commission.

This is not the first time such an offer has been made. An article released by Cyprus News Agency in December 2017 said that Energean had made an informal approach to the government to develop and take Aphrodite gas by pipeline to the FPSO (Floating Production Storage and Offloading facility) it proposes to use to develop its Karish and Tanin gas fields in Israel, treat it and export it to Cyprus. The offer was not confirmed by the government.

Given that Energean is offering gas to its Israeli clients at less $4.50 per million btu (about 1000 cubic feet), such an offer could have been interesting and possibly compete with Cyprus’ liquified natural gas (LNG) import plans. With Aphrodite running the risk of remaining stranded due to the low global gas prices, it merited consideration. Unfortunately, it was not considered and the offer lapsed.

Did Eni pledge USD 3 bn in investments in Egypt? Plus: We could be exporting natural gas by year’s end, early 2019 - ENTERPRISE

Sunday, 24 June 2018

INVESTMENT WATCH- Did Eni pledge USD 3 bn in investments in Egypt? Eni plans to allocate USD 3 bn in new investments in Egypt over “the coming period,” Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said, according to a purported statement from the Oil Ministry floating around in the local press on Thursday. The company’s investments in the fields of Nooros and Zohr now stood at USD 8.4 bn, Descalzi reportedly said during a sit down with Oil Minister Tarek El Molla.

Eni is also keen on exploring possible projects in renewable energy, Descalzi said in a meeting with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, according to an Ittihadiya statement. While the statement gave no detail, it is likely that Descalzi is speaking of building a 50 MW solar power plant in the Red Sea’s Abu Redis to sell power directly to consumers under an independent power producer (IPP) framework. Eni was one of five companies that had submitted proposals back in April to build under the IPP framework.

Mubadala enters Egypt with Zohr acquisition: Descalzi’s statements come a day after Eni finalized a 10% stake sale in the Shorouk concession, which holds the Zohr gas field, to the UAE’s Mubadala Petroleum, according to a statement from the Oil Ministry. The USD 934 mn agreement, which was signed by Eni in March, now sees Eni’s share through its JV with the Oil Ministry IEOC fall to 50%, with Rosneft holding a 30% and BP taking 10% alongside Mubadala’s 10%. More reading: Eni statement’s (pdf) on the transaction.

Zohr brings turnaround in Egypt’s LNG fortunes - LNG WORLD SHIPPING

Wed 16 May 2018

Mike Corkhill

With the start of the third production unit at Egypt’s giant Zohr offshore gas field earlier this week, the country’s need for LNG imports is rapidly drawing to a close.

Production at Zohr, which only began in December 2017, now stands at 1.1Bn ft3 per day (bcfd). Eni, the operator of the Zohr field, along with its partners in the project and Egyptian National Gas Holding Company plan to boost the venture’s output to 2 bcfd by the end of 2018 and to reach a plateau production level of 2.9 bcfd by 2019. At that rate Zohr alone will meet 60% of Egypt’s entire gas demand.

The recently discovered Zohr field, with some 30Tn ft3 (tcf) of recoverable reserves, is the largest deposit of gas in the Mediterranean. It lies in the Shorouk Block 190 km north of Port Said.

Zohr is helping Egypt emerge from a gas-deficit scenario, which manifested itself earlier in the decade amid the Arab Spring uprising and the depletion of domestic gas reserves, much more quickly than anticipated.

A U.S. Shale Gas Cargo Is Heading to Israel for the First Time - BLOOMBERG

May 10, 2018, 11:57 PM GMT+3
Ryan Collins and Kevin Varley

Israel is about to receive a cargo of U.S. liquefied natural gas, the first to arrive in the Middle Eastern nation from America’s shores since exports began in 2016.

The vessel British Diamond, beneficially owned by BP Plc, is set to arrive at Israel’s Hadera import terminal on May 27 after departing Cheniere Energy Inc.’s Sabine Pass in Louisiana on May 3, ship tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. Most cargoes to Hadera have come from Trinidad and Tobago, which also ships to the U.S.

U.S. shale gas has sailed from the nation’s two operating LNG export terminals -- Sabine Pass and Dominion Energy Inc.’s Cove Point facility in Maryland -- to buyers from Mexico to China. With three more projects set to start up in the next year, America is on course to rival Qatar and Australia for global LNG dominance in the next five years.

Israel’s gas imports, meanwhile, may slide in coming years as the nation produces more gas from domestic fields. Earlier this year, Dolphinus Holdings Ltd., a private Egyptian company, agreed to buy gas from Noble Energy Inc. and its partners from Israel’s two largest offshore fields, Leviathan and Tamar.

EMGC '18: Cyprus to import gas via FSRU to meet EU GHG targets - WORLD OIL / HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

March/22/2018
Adrienne Blume

NICOSIA -- Day 2 of Gulf Publishing Company's Eastern Mediterranean Gas Conference (EMGC 2018) in Cyprus kicked off with a keynote presentation by Dr. Symeon Kassianides, chairman of The Natural Gas Public Co. (DEFA) of Cyprus. Dr. Kassianides spoke about the proposal to establish a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) to import gas to Cyprus for use in power generation.

The target for first gas is 2020. In light of this tight deadline, which is motivated by Cyprus' need to meet EU greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions limits, DEFA is working with Cyprus' energy ministry and EU organizations to move quickly on the project.

Dr. Symeon Kassianides, chairman of The Natural Gas Public Co. (DEFA) of Cyprus.

CyprusGas2EU Project scope. The FSRU project—known as CyprusGas2EU—stems from the European Commission's €7.5-million CEF Syngery (CYnergy) Project, which is concerned with the establishment of an integrated storage, transmission and distribution system for natural gas in Cyprus in the forms of LNG and CNG. CYnergy, which has been 60% funded, aligns with the CyprusGas2EU Project's supply target date of 2020.

The CyprusGas2EU Project has successfully secured environmental licenses and intergovernmental licenses (e.g. Greece). Consultations with all Cypriot operating financial institutions have been held, and a grant of €101 million has been secured to fund 40% of the CyprusGas2EU project.

DEFA to seek gas providers next month - CYPRUS MAIL

March 20, 2018
George Psyllides

The state gas company (Defa) said Tuesday it will be inviting tenders next month for the supply of liquified natural gas for power generation.

Defa chairman Symeon Kassianides also told the House commerce committee that it will be issuing a call for bids for the necessary infrastructure.

The new effort aims at having the fuel by January 2020 to avoid emissions fines.

The two contracts will be separate, Kassianides said.

The Defa chairman said a floating unit to store and deliquefy the fuel will cost some €250m of which 40 per cent, or €101m, will come from the EU.

The European Investment Bank has expressed interest to participate in the project while the island’s state-owned electricity company (EAC) will also hold 30 per cent.

A new perspective to Turkey-EU relations - KATHIMERINI

2 MARCH 2018 : 17:15

Developments in the Eastern Mediterranean involving natural gas hold many benefits for the region’s countries including Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Israel, Egypt and the European Union in general as long as they serve common interests instead of causing tensions. Not just those concerning gas, but all energy projects in the Mediterranean have the potential to strengthen economic and political ties and alleviate security concerns. Unfortunately, there are ongoing disputes in the region concerning territorial waters and the continental shelf. In light of the above, there is an urgent need for common ground to be reached on mutual interests to resolve the existing conflicts. Without a proper solution, gas exploration work in the disputed areas will only lead to further problems. All sides may have their own justifications for their actions, but there is a need to adopt a new perspective to resolve problems.

Turkey and the EU share many of the same energy challenges. Both are lacking in domestic fossil fuel resources and are therefore reliant on imports for a significant portion of their energy needs. Natural gas poses the most pressing issue as Turkey and the EU remain heavily dependent on a single supplier, Russia. In 2016, Turkey imported 24.5 billion cubic meters (bcm) or 52.94 percent of its natural gas from Russia. The EU, by contrast, receives 39.5 percent of its gas imports from Russia, which – while lower than Turkey – conceals the fact that many EU countries, particularly in Eastern Europe, rely on Russia for close to 100 percent of their natural gas needs. Dependency on a single or few suppliers increases the risk of political and technical disruptions and decreases importers’ leverage.

Egypt's potential gas surplus could feed global LNG glut - WORLD OIL

FEB/20/2018
SALMA EL WARDANY

CAIRO (Bloomberg) -- Egypt faces a possible over-abundance of natural gas after two Israeli companies proposed a $15 billion supply deal, raising the prospect that the Arab nation may turn its surplus into liquefied natural gas and export it to a market currently glutted with LNG.

Egypt was already expecting to become self-sufficient in natural gas by the end of this year with the start of Eni SpA’s giant Zohr field, Oil Minister Tarek El-Molla said last month. Noble Energy and Delek Drilling-LP said Monday they plan to supply around 64 Bcmg over 10 years to Egypt’s Dolphinus Holdings from Israel’s Tamar and Leviathan reservoirs, in a $15 billion export arrangement.

The most populous Arab country has facilities to turn gas into super-chilled LNG, which can be exported by ship. The global LNG oversupply is unlikely to end before the mid-2020s, the IEA forecast in October.

Egypt to import 3 LNG cargoes from France's Engie for Q2 2018 -sources - REUTERS

FEBRUARY 18, 2018 / 9:03 AM

Reporting by Ehab Farouk; Writing by Nadine Awadalla; Editing by Susan Fenton

CAIRO, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) has arranged for the delivery of three liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes from France’s Engie in the second quarter of 2018, EGAS sources said on Sunday.

Trade sources told Reuters last month that Egypt was looking to import five cargoes of LNG at competitive pricing.

Two trade sources said the purchases were arranged through bilateral deals and not via a standard tender process.

Egypt plans to stop importing LNG by the end of the 2017/18 fiscal year ending in June as it speeds up production at recently discovered gas fields, the petroleum minister said in January. 

Athens Energy Forum: 'There is more natural gas' in the East Med - IBNA

16-02-2018, 09:37

Nefeli Tzanetakou

Energy is the reason why U.S. ambassador to Greece, Geoffrey R. Pyatt, went to Ankara yesterday, Thursday, said Steven Bitner, an economist at the US Embassy in Athens, speaking at the Athens Energy Forum conference.

The latest developments in the Eastern Mediterranean region due to Ankara's choices have been a cause for concern.

The goal, as agreed by all participants at the Athens Energy Forum, as gas demand will increase steadily in the coming years, is transnational co-operation so that all involved sides make the most of the energy game in progress in the Eastern Mediterranean.

However, the remaining "thorns" are the Cyprus issue, the war in Syria, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.