Importing Israeli gas: Jordan’s self-harming energy choice - MIDDLE EAST EYE

'Expedient' regasification ship, anchored off the coast of Israel
on February 26, 2015 to supply Electric Corporation (AFP)

Hisham Bustani
Friday 30 September 2016 09:18 UTC

Pressure from the US and corruption lie behind a $10bn contract that endangers Jordan's energy sovereignty while aiding Israel

Two years after signing a letter of intent to import gas from Israeli-occupied fields in the eastern Mediterranean, the National Electric Power Company of Jordan (NEPCO), a 100 percent government-owned firm that monopolises the generation of electrical power in Jordan, finally signed the actual gas deal this Monday.

According to the terms of this deal, the Israeli consortium led by the US company Noble Energy is to supply a gross quantity of approximately 1.6 trillion cubic feet of natural gas from the yet undeveloped Leviathan field, over a period of 15 years, for the price of $10bn.

Turkey-Israel deal set to start a Middle East gas bonanza - MIDDLE EAST EYE

Aurangzeb Qureshi
Tuesday 6 September 2016 12:04 UTC

Putting past troubles behind them, both Turkey and Israel see this as the deal of the century as the Leviathan gas field comes on tap

With Turkey and Israel about to restart diplomatic relations after a six-year hiatus, it would be remiss to not mention the role of natural gas in the deal.

In 2010, Israel discovered the Leviathan gas field – a mammoth discovery of 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas worth $95 billion on its shore. The discovery has since been caught up in regulatory hurdles until June of this year. The reversal in Israel’s natural gas fortunes has naturally caught Turkey’s attention.

Israel top court strikes down gas development deal - MIDDLE EAST EYE

Court suspended ruling for one year to allow parliament time to amend objectionable stability clause

Monday 28 March 2016

Israel's top court on Sunday struck down Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's landmark natural gas policy aimed at paving the way for the exploitation of Mediterranean gas reserves, while suspending formally striking the law for one year so that he and parliament can fix an objectionable clause.

A panel of Supreme Court justices said in their ruling that a clause in the plan that prevented it from being changed for a decade was unacceptable.

"We have decided to cancel the gas deal because of the stability clause" that would have barred future governments from altering the deal, the justices said. They suspended the ruling for a year to enable parliament to amend the agreement.