Noble Energy not connected to troubled Noble Group, it says - CYPRUS MAIL

MAY 23RD, 2017

Jean Christou

Noble Energy said on Tuesday it was not connected to the Noble Group, which is currently said to be serious financial difficulties.

“Local media groups are reporting on possible financial problems Noble Group is facing,” a statement from Noble Energy said.

“To avoid any possible misunderstandings due to the similarity of our names, Noble Energy Inc. would like to note that it is not related in any way to Noble Group. Any reports that suggest Noble Group is the same company that is operating in Cyprus EEZ is incorrect. Any implications concerning the financial situation of Noble Energy, Inc. based on Noble Group are also incorrect”

Russian gas exports to Turkey up by 26% in January-April 2017 - TASS

May 21, 22:07UTC+3© EPA/KERIM OKTEN

ISTANBUL, May 21. /TASS/. Russian gas exports to Turkey grew by 26% in January-April 2017, to reach 10.5 billion cubic meters, according to documents prepared by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s visit to Turkey.

"In 2016, Russia’s natural gas exports to Turkey amounted to 24.7 billion cubic meters. In January-April 2017, gas exports grew by 26%, to reach 10.5 billion cubic meters," the document says.

Apart from that, basis has been laid for closer cooperation in the gas sector thanks to the implementation of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline project with a capacity of 31.4 cubic meters.

Cyprus EEZ is heating up - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

May 21, 2017
Charles Ellinas

As we get closer to the July start of drilling by Total in block 11 Cyprus EEZ is hotting-up, from the usual headlines and often exaggeration in the local press, to political positioning, possibly driven by the forthcoming presidential elections, and Turkey’s predictable and expected bullying. But, thankfully, it is the oil and gas companies that have their feet on the ground, proceeding with the serious business of exploration and drilling as planned. This is the subject of my article today.

Turkey’s position

In order to understand Turkey’s disruptive and often provocative actions in Cyprus EEZ, it is important to understand its position.

Nicosia to host tripartite meeting with Jordan and Greece - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

Cyprus' President Anastasiades & King of Jordan Abdullah II
at a meeting in Nicosia in September 2016

May 20, 2017

Nicosia will this autumn be hosting a tripartite meeting with Jordan and Greece, Deputy Government Spokesman Viktor Papadopoulos announced on Saturday.

Papadopoulos, who is accompanying President Nicos Anastasiades on an official trip to Amman, said the meeting was decided on during the course of a meeting between Anastasiades and the King of Jordan Abdullah II .

Papadopoulos said: “the President of the Republic accepted the King of Jordan’s own invitation to attend the International Economic Forum on the Middle East And Africa, in which many people in the region, heads of state and government, as well as many entrepreneurs, investment companies, are involved, and which is also very important to us. In this margins of the meeting, the President of the Republic had a series of very important contacts. First of all, she saw Mrs Mogherini, EU Commissioner for Foreign Affairs, and analysed his proposal for a repeat of (the Conference on Cyprus in) Geneva, as he had tabled it in the afternoon.They exchanged views on the Cyprus issue and the role of the EU in the effort to resolve the Cyprus problem, so that we have a functioning state within the EU and with all the acquis to govern the solution of the Cyprus problem.“

Troubled waters - EXECUTIVE MAGAZINE

May 15, 2017

Matt Nash

From a technical standpoint, the East Mediterranean is a challenge because the seabed is generally more than one thousand meters below the surface. Ultra-deep water, in industry parlance. From a geopolitical standpoint, the complexity is arguably even greater.

Many problems among a variety of neighbors

Production of East Med gas began in Egypt in the late 1960s. Activity remained localized for over thirty years until discoveries were made off Israel and the Gaza Strip in 1999 and 2000. For political reasons, the relatively small Gaza find remains undeveloped, while exploration continued apace offshore Israel, resulting in discoveries – namely Tamar in 2009 and Leviathan in 2010 (see map below) – that have helped spark intense interest in the so-called Levantine Basin, a subsea structure shared by Lebanon, Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Syria, Cyprus, and Turkey, at least from Turkey’s perspective. In 2012, Cyprus was elated by news of the Aphrodite discovery, but for all the gas Israel and Cyprus have found, not a molecule has yet been exported. In fact, most of the gas (including everything in Tamar, Leviathan and Aphrodite) remains buried for lack of a clear means to move it out of the region, among other reasons.

US envoy hails EU-backed Balkan, East Med regional diversification projects, slams Russia’s Nord Stream-2 - NEW EUROPE

MAY 19, 2017 21:12 
Kostis Geropoulos

ATHENS – Several key energy projects currently underway in Greece will bring significant quantities of non-Russian gas to Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, and other regional partners, lessening the bloc’s reliance on Gazprom, US Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt told a conference in Athens.

He was referring to the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), the Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector (IGB), and the expansion of the liquefied natural gas terminal (LNG) Revithoussa. “While the volumes involved are not enough to satisfy European gas demand, the introduction of new pipeline gas improves the market dynamic, encouraging competition, which will benefit everyone,” Pyatt said in remarks at Hellenic Association for Energy Economics (HAEE) Conference.

ExxonMobil, Total discuss offshore drilling opportunities in Greece -ministry - NASDAQ / REUTERS

May 19, 2017, 12:40:00 PM EDT

Reporting by Karolina Tagaris, Lefteris Papadimas and Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Susan Fenton

ATHENS - Greece's energy minister held talks on Friday with representatives of U.S. oil major ExxonMobil <XOM.N> and France's Total <TOTF.PA> about gas exploration opportunities off Greek shores, the energy ministry said. 

A government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a consortium of ExxonMobil, Total and Greece's biggest oil refiner Hellenic Petroleum <HEPr.AT> are expected to submit an offer "in the coming period" for exploration south of Crete. 

Development at BP’s Atoll gas field 53% completed - ENTERPRISE

Thursday, 18 May 2017

BP has completed 53% of the development work being carried out at the North Damietta offshore concession’s USD 3.8 bn Atoll field, including drilling three deepwater wells 950 meters below the water’s surface, the Oil Ministry said in a statement yesterday. 

The field, which holds about 1.5 tcf of gas reserves, is expected to begin producing 300 mcf/d and 8k bbl/d of condensates by December 2017.

Cabinet approves natural gas import plan - CYPRUS MAIL

May 18, 2017
Staff Reporter

THE cabinet on Thursday approved a proposal by state-owned Natural Gas Public Company (Defa) to proceed as soon as possible with two tenders for the import of natural gas.

The first tender will provide for the creation of the necessary infrastructure and the second for the procurement of the natural gas, said Energy Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis.

“It is actually the beginning of yet another effort, slightly different from the previous one, to channel gas to Cyprus at the first stage for generating power and possibly for other uses,” he said.

Greece to conclude power grid spin-off by June -ADMIE chief - EURONEWS

18/05/2017Reporting by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Karolina Tagaris and David Goodman

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece will conclude the spin-off of power grid operator ADMIE (ΑΔΜΗΕ) by mid-June, meeting a key term of its third international bailout,ADMIE’s chief executive said on Thursday. Athens and its EU/IMF lenders had agreed that 24 percent of ADMIE, owned by state-controlled utility Public Power Corp, would be sold this year to China’s State Grid Corp and a further 25 percent to a Greek state holding company. 

Smaller companies could miss out on IOC payments; all IOCs to be paid by 2019 - ENTERPRISE

Thursday, 18 May 2017

Smaller oil and gas operators may miss out on the second wave of payments to international oil companies (IOCs) the central bank is planning on dishing out, LeAnne Graves writes for The National. Governor Tarek Amer had said Egypt had made a payment of USD 750 mn to IOCs and will make a similar payment by 1 June. With both payments, Egypt’s arrears to IOCs would be brought down to USD 1.5 bn. “One small operator in Egypt, pumping about 10,000 barrels of oil per day, said payments from the government came in [EGP] with a ‘dribble of [USD]’. The executive, who asked not to be named, said some vendors were taking [EGP], but the firm didn’t have enough to pay anyone who wanted [USD],” Graves writes. Allen Sandeep at Naeem’s research arm expects “the amounts that would be paid per IOC would be proportionate to their part of the total outstanding amount of [USD 3.5 bn] as a whole.”

UAE's Dana Gas creditors appoint Moelis and Weil for sukuk restructuring –sources - REUTERS

Wed May 17, 2017 | 10:20am EDT | Dubai
Davide Barbuscia

A committee of the holders of some $700 million in Islamic bonds issued by Dana Gas has appointed New York-based boutique investment bank Moelis and U.S. legal firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges to negotiate restructuring of the notes, sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

With a cash balance of around $300 million at end-March and the sukuk due to mature in October this year, the Abu Dhabi-listed energy producer said earlier this month that it intended to hold discussions with its creditors.

Comptroller: Tamar gas agreement cost IEC $2b too much - GLOBES

17 May, 2017 13:43 

Nati Yefet

The State Comptroller has found costly faults in Israel Electric Corp.'s natural gas agreement with the Tamar partners.

Faults in the process of formulating an agreement between Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) (TASE: ELEC.B22) and the Tamar natural gas reservoir partners caused $820 million-1.5 billion in excess costs that could have been foreseen. This was the main conclusion of the State Comptroller's report on the process of signing the agreement. It now appears that the damage is actually $2-2.3 billion. The audit was conducted in September 2015-March 2016, following which supplementary checks were made by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of National Infrastructure, Energy, and Water Resources Israel Natural Gas Authority.

Russia's Rosneft says eyes joint oil supplies to Egypt with Italy's Eni - ZAWYA / REUTERS

SOCHI, Russia, May 17 (Reuters)

Reporting by Olesya Astakhova in Moscow and Denis Pinchuk in Sochi; writing by Vladimir Soldatkin; editing by Jack Stubbs

Russia's largest oil producer Rosneft and Italian energy company Eni have signed an agreement to broaden cooperation, including in possible joint oil product supplies to Egypt, Rosneft said on Wednesday.

The deal was signed as part of Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni's visit to Russia, during which he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Israeli energy firms Delek Drilling, Avner Oil to finally merge - REUTERS

Yossi Abu, CEO of Delek's subsidiaries Delek Drilling & Avner Oil 

Wed May 17, 2017 | 6:34am EDT
Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch

Israel's Delek Drilling (DEDRp.TA) and Avner Oil (AVNRp.TA), both units of conglomerate Delek Group (DLEKG.TA), said on Wednesday they have completed a long-awaited merger and will begin trading next week as one company.

The new entity will keep the name Delek Drilling and will have a market value in Tel Aviv of about 16 billion shekels ($4.4 billion).

It is through Delek Drilling and Avner Oil that Delek Group owns major stakes in the large Israeli offshore natural gas fields Tamar, which began production in 2013, and Leviathan, which is due to come online in late 2019.

Delek Drilling also said in a statement that exports from Tamar to Jordan's Arab Potash Co and Jordan Bromine plants began in January.

Egypt paid $750 mln in oil company arrears, to pay same in June - REUTERS

Tue May 16, 2017 | 1:31pm EDT

Additional reporting by Omar Fahmy; Writing by Eric Knecht; Editing by Mark Trevelyan

Egypt has paid off $750 million of its debt to international oil companies and will make a second payment of the same amount at the start of next month, Central Bank Governor Tarek Amer said on Tuesday.

Egypt has struggled to pay arrears to foreign oil and gas companies operating in the country, with outstanding debt at $3.5 billion before the latest payment.

"Today $750 million was paid to international oil companies and another $750 million will be paid on June 1, meaning that there is $1.5 billion the government has committed to pay to the international companies," Amer told a news conference.

The payments are the first since Egypt paid about $100 million in the last quarter of 2016.

Egypt's Nooros gas field output tops one bcf/d - MENA / REUTERS

Tue May 16, 2017 12:22pm GMTReporting by Mostafa Hashem, writing by Asma Alsharif; editing by Jason Neely

CAIRO May 16 (Reuters) - Production from Egypt's Nooros field has exceeded one billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas per day, Egypt's state news agency MENA reported on Tuesday.

Italian oil major Eni, which began production at the Nile Delta offshore field in September 2015, had said last year it plans to raise production to more than 1 bcf per day in the first quarter of this year.

Egypt's Sisi: Newly-discovered gas fields to save about $3.6 bln yearly - NASDAQ / REUTERS

May 16, 2017, 06:38:00 PM EDT

Omar Fahmy, Amina Ismail; editing: Grant McCool

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said he expected that recently discovered gas fields would save Egypt about $3.6 billion yearly as they start coming into production, state-run newspapers reported on Tuesday night. 

Egypt wants to speed up gas production from newly-discovered fields, with an eye to halting imports by 2019. Once an energy exporter, it has become an importer after domestic output failed to keep pace with rising demand in recent years, but the discovery of the 850 billion-cubic metre Zohr field in 2015 is expected to change that. 

Interview with David Chi, Vice-President & General Manager – Apache Egypt - ENERGY EGYPT / ENERGY BOARDROOM

May 16, 2017

David Chi, Vice-President of Apache Corporation and General Manager for Apache Egypt Companies, outlines Apache’s successful 2016 performance in Egypt, their ‘fire in the belly’ attitude underlying their stellar track record of operating in Egypt, their long-term investment strategy in Egypt and his perspective of Egypt’s potential as an investment destination.

IAI completes installation of advanced Alpha Radar on Sa'ar-4.5 missile ship - JERUSALEM POST

ALPHA RADAR is seen on an Israel Navy Sa’ar-4.5 missile ship
(photo credit: IAI)

MAY 16, 2017 06:31 
Anna Ahronheim

Navy to receive total of 11 systems as part of ongoing upgrades to fleet.

The Israel Navy is a step closer to upgrading its entire combat surface fleet, as Israel Aerospace Industries announced that it has completed the installation of the advanced ALPHA radar system on the Sa’ar-4.5 missile ship and is proceeding to operational sea trials.

The Navy is expected to receive two more ALPHA (Advanced Lightweight Phased Array) ELM-2258 radar systems by the end of the year, for a total of 11 systems installed on the missile ships.

Shalakany advises Engie on E&P asset sale in Egypt - ENTERPRISE / SHALAKANY LAW

Monday, 15 May 2017

M&A Watch- Shalakany Law announced it assisted Engie as the sole sell side legal advisor in the transaction to sell its Egyptian E&P assets to Neptune Oil & Gas. Private equity-backed Neptune had agreed to acquire a majority stake in Engie’s E&P assets globally for USD 3.9 bn on Thursday, Reuters reported, with the expectation that the deal, which includes assets in Egypt, Algeria, Germany, and the North Sea will close in 1Q2018.

Aly El Shalakany, the lead partner from Shalakany acting on the transaction, said: “We are very pleased to have successfully assisted Engie, a long standing client of the firm, with this strategic disposal, which marks a key step in its shift away from oil and gas to more regulated businesses in the power sector.”

Egypt to receive first shipment of Iraqi crude oil on Tuesday under new deal - AHRAM ONLINE

Egypt's Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla

Monday 15 May 2017

Egypt will receive two million barrels of crude oil on Tuesday from Iraq, the first shipment to arrive as part of a deal with the Iraq's state oil marketing company SOMO, Al-Ahram’s Arabic website quoted Egypt’s Oil Minister Tarek El-Molla as saying.

Under the terms of the year-long agreement, which was reached last month by Baghdad and Cairo, Iraq will sell 12 million barrels of oil to Egypt.

Cairo has been struggling to procure oil and natural gas for domestic market needs from several sources in the past few years.

However, recent surges in natural gas discoveries and projected finds in the country promise to help Egypt cut down on its liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in the coming year.

An LNG plant is still the best option for Cyprus - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

May 14, 2017
Panayiotis Tilliros

The Eastern Mediterranean (East Med) energy resources constitute a credible alternative source that can help Europe diversify and reinforce its energy supply and transit security, given that indigenous gas production in Europe is on a declining trend and demand is on a rising trend.

Besides its traditional gas supply routes from Russia, Norway (indigenous production) and North Africa, Europe is seeking new gas supplies via the Southern Gas Corridor, comprising the ‘Fourth Corridor’ in the Caspian sea (Azerbaijan and probably Turkmenistan) and the ‘Fifth Corridor’ in the East Med. According to an official EU website, the EU aims to import initially 10 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas per year when the new corridor opens in 2019-20. This is predicted to rise to 80 to 100 bcm per annum in the future.

ExxonMobil to dip into Greek hydrocarbons - KATHIMERINI

14.05.2017 : 21:05
Chryssa Liaggou

Senior ExxonMobil officials are expected to arrive in Athens in the next few days to sign an agreement with Hellenic Petroleum and France’s Total regarding the hydrocarbon surveying work in Block 2 beneath the Ionian Sea, in western Greece.

Using Hellenic Petroleum as a vehicle, the US energy giant is strengthening its position in the broader region of the Southeastern Mediterranean – where the competition of the global oil industry has shifted to – six months after its arrival in Cyprus’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

ExxonMobil’s presence in Greece lends credence to indications about the existence of hydrocarbon reserves in the area. It is also expected to accelerate geopolitical developments in the region.

Egypt starts weaning itself off LNG, domestic production increases - ENTERPRISE / REUTERS / BP

Sunday, 14 May 2017

We’ve started weaning ourselves off imported natural gas, Reuters says: Egypt is holding talks with its LNG suppliers to defer contracted shipments this year and aims to cut back on purchases in 2018, traders and industry sources tell Reuters. 

Domestic gas production is squeezing out demand for foreign imports, Oleg Vukmanovic writes for the newswire. EGAS “is also scaling back LNG purchase plans for 2018 from 70 to as low as 30 cargoes, one Egyptian industry source added, signalling the withdrawal of one of the fastest-growing LNG importers from the global stage.”

How natural gas could be a geopolitical game-changer in the Mideast (Video 36 min) - FRANCE24

2017-05-12
Marine Pradel

It's a discovery that could easily shake up the geopolitical order in the Middle East. Deep under the eastern Mediterranean lies the largest natural gas basin ever found on Europe's doorstep. But the gas fields often coincide with disputed borders between rival nations. Our reporter Marine Pradel investigated this lucrative resource, which everyone wants a piece of.

Cyprus is “potential pivot for gas development”, ENI International Affairs Director says - FAMAGUSTA GAZETTE / CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY

Active (May 2017) in Cyprus' EEZ

Friday, 12 May, 2017

Italian energy company ENI sees Cyprus as a “potential pivot for gas development” in the region, Lapo Pistelli, the company`s International Affairs Director, told a conference on Thursday, noting that should the Levantine region become a gas hub, “Cyprus is at the crossroads of every potential destination”.

The investment opportunities offered in Cyprus were discussed on Thursday at a special session on Cyprus’ economy, titled “Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean: Attractive investment opportunities within a secure business environment”, in the framework of the EBRD`s Annual Meeting, taking place in Nicosia.

Energy, Industry, Commerce and Tourism Minister, Yiorgos Lakkotrypis, noted Cyprus` energy potential as well as the investment opportunities offered in the tourism and hospitality sector of the island.

Dana Gas first-quarter profit nearly doubles as production rises - WORLD OIL

5/11/2017
Anthony Dipaola

DUBAI (Bloomberg) -- Dana Gas PJSC profit nearly doubled in the first quarter as the United Arab Emirates-based natural gas producer boosted output.

See here press release.

Net income rose to 40 million dirhams ($11 million) from 22 million dirhams a year earlier, the company said Thursday in a statement to the Abu Dhabi stock exchange. Sales climbed 44% to 432 million dirhams.

Dana Gas, which pumps most of its gas at fields in Egypt and Iraq, is seeking to recover payments from both countries for overdue bills. The company was owed $1 billion from Egypt and the self-governed Kurdish region in northern Iraq at the end of the quarter. The receivables rose from $982 million at the end of 2016 because payments from Egypt slowed, CEO Patrick Allman-Ward said on a media conference call.

British oil investments to make Egypt new energy superpower, says UK envoy - AHRAM ONLINE

Thursday 11 May 2017

British Ambassador to Egypt John Casson said petroleum giant British Petroleum (BP) is investing $13 billion over five years to make Egypt the new energy superpower, through investments worth more than Cairo's three-year $12 billion loan deal with the IMF.

In a press release, the UK Embassy in Cairo said Casson attended the inauguration of BP's first two gas fields in the West Nile Delta Project, which was opened Wednesday by President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and the company's chief executive Bob Dudley.

Qalaa completes 92% of works on Egypt's largest oil refinery - AMWAL AL GHAD

11 May, 2017
Hisham Ibrahim

Egypt’s Qalaa Holdings has completed 92 percent of the works in the Egyptian Refining Company’s (ERC) anticipated oil refinery project, with investments worth $3.6 billion.

The refinery, the largest in Egypt, aims to decrease present-day diesel import needs by 50 percent and Sulphur emissions by one third as well as to help reduce the country’s annual subsidy bill.

Qalaa plans to complete works and inaugurate ERC’s project by the end of 2017, managing director Karim Sadek told Amwal Al Ghad on Wednesday.

Qalaa owns 20 percent of the Egyptian Refining Company (ERC), whose current shareholding includes the state-run Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), in addition to Egyptian and Arab private investors.

Few takers for Israel's new gas exploration tenders - GLOBES

11 May, 2017 10:30
Nati Yefet

Burdensome regulation, limited export opportunities and geopolitical isolation mean there is scant interest in the licenses on offer.

The Ministry of National Infrastructure, Energy, and Water Resources' tender is likely to yield meager results, even though the deadline for participating in it was postponed from April until July. According to various energy market sources, three to five companies are expected to take part in the tender, even though it involves 24 marine blocks, and despite the grandiose declarations issued when the tender was announced last November. The Association of Oil and Gas Exploration Industries in Israel termed the tender a "historic decision," and Minister of National Infrastructure, Energy, and Water Resources Yuval Steinitz has since repeated at every opportunity his intention of turning Israel into a "regional natural gas power."

SGCC agreement for 24% of IPTO endorsed by Brussels - ENERGY PRESS

11.5.2017

The European Commission has endorsed an agreement between state-controlled PPC, the main power utility, and China’s SGCC (State Grid Corporation of China) for the latter’s acquisition of a 24 percent stake in the power grid operator IPTO (ΑΔΜΗΕ), a PPC subsidiary.

The proposed acquisition, priced at 320 million euros, does not breach EU competition regulations, the European Commission announced.

The Greek government had submitted its application to Brussels, seeking an endorsement for the agreement, just over a month ago, on April 10.

Wintershall says in talks with Libya to resolve oil export dispute - HYDROCARBON PROCESSING / REUTERS

May 10/2017
Reporting by Aidan Lewis; Additional reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar in London and Vera Eckert in Frankfurt; Editing by Susan Thomas and Greg Mahlich

TUNIS (Reuters) -- Libya's oil production is running at above 800,000 bpd for the first time since 2014, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said on Wednesday, but a commercial dispute with German oil firm Wintershall has shut in a further 160,000 bpd.

Libya's output could reach between 1.1 MMbpd and 1.2 MMbpd if political obstacles were removed, the NOC said in a statement.

"We are able to produce an average of 1.1 MMbpd to 1.2 MMbpd over the rest of this year, but for this to happen our oil must flow freely. A national effort is required," NOC Chairman Mustafa Sanalla said.

One dud oil field doesn't set a trend as Kurds keep drilling - WORLD OIL

5/10/2017

Angelina Rascouet

LONDON (Bloomberg) -- When one of the biggest crude producers in Iraqi Kurdistan downgraded reserves in March, doubts about the economic potential of the region -- a key player in the fight against Islamic State terrorism -- deepened. But evidence suggests it’s too soon to write off the emerging oil province.

The downgrade at Genel Energy Plc’s Taq Taq field, the second in little more than a year, sent its shares tumbling amid gathering anxiety over a region already struggling with weak crude prices and escalating costs to fight militants.

Yet that disappointment stands in contrast to improving prospects elsewhere in Kurdistan. DNO ASA, the area’s biggest publicly listed producer, this month doubled the number of wells planned for 2017 at its Tawke field, while competitor WesternZagros Resources Ltd. increased reserve estimates in March.

First gas from West Nile Delta contributes to DEA’s growth - DEA

Cairo, 10.05.2017

• Production from the West Nile Delta (WND) project commenced
• First gas ahead of schedule and production above plan

Production from the offshore WND gas fields commenced on 24 March 2017 from the first two fields, Taurus and Libra. Nine wells have now been commissioned and the fields are currently producing at a flow rate of more than 700 million cubic feet of gas per day.

“West Nile Delta is the largest new gas project that has been brought into production in Egypt in the last years. Its gas will contribute materially to the energy balance in the country. It is also one of the largest investment projects within DEA’s portfolio and we are pleased that the first gas milestone has been reached,” says Thomas Rappuhn, Chief Executive Officer of DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG.

“DEA was already involved in this project in its exploration phase and I would like to thank the team for the successful and professional implementation of the first part of the project,” Thomas Rappuhn adds.

“DEA is proud of being an active partner in this project. All members of the project team, within BP as the operator and DEA, have done an excellent job in order to achieve the production launch,” says Thomas Radwitz, General Manager of DEA Egypt.

Höegh Gallant begins periodical maintenance, to operate at full capacity during the summer - ENTERPRISE / AL BORSA

Wednesday, 10 May 2017

Norway’s Höegh began periodical servicing and maintenance operations last week on its Egypt-anchored Höegh Gallant floating storage and regasification, Al Borsa reports. 

The FSRU, a key part of Egypt’s natural gas import infrastructure, will be back at operating at full capacity throughout the summer months, re-gasifying 500 mcf/d.

IGB launch date reset for first quarter of 2020 in revised project plan - ENERGY PRESS

10/05/2017

Construction work on the prospective IGB (Greek-Bulgarian Interconnector) has been rescheduled to start within 2018 and the commercial launch set for the first quarter of 2020, according to the project’s latest timeline revision, presented by its contractor, ICGB, to European Commission officials in Brussels late last month.

ICGB presented its revised IGB plan as part of the effort to seek PCI (Projects of Common Interest) classification, which would ensure EU funds. Other European PCI candidate projects were also presented by their developers.

The IGB, whose length and diameter are planned to measure 182 km and 32 inches, respectively, will link Komotini in Greece’s northeast with Stara Zagora in Bulgaria.

BP announces start of production from West Nile Delta development achieving first gas eight months ahead of schedule and production 20 percent above plan - BP

10 May 2017

BP today announced that it has started gas production from the first two fields, Taurus and Libra, of the West Nile Delta development in Egypt. The project was delivered eight months ahead of start-up schedule and under budget. First gas was exported to Egypt’s national grid on 24 March 2017 and the commissioning of all nine wells of the development’s first two fields and ramp up to stable operations has now been completed.

The West Nile Delta development, which includes five gas fields across the North Alexandria and West Mediterranean Deepwater offshore concession blocks, is being developed as two separate projects to enable BP and its partners to accelerate gas production commitments to Egypt. When fully onstream in 2019, combined production from both projects is expected to reach up to almost 1.5 billion cubic feet a day (bcf/d), equivalent to about 30 per cent of Egypt’s current gas production. All the gas produced will be fed into the national gas grid.

Israel's Delek Seeks London Listing as Energy Group Goes Globalby - BLOOMBERG

10 May 2017

Angelina Rascouet

• Company hopes to list in U.K. capital in the ‘near future’
• Delek recently bought Britain’s Ithaca to expand in North Sea

Delek Group Ltd., the Israeli energy company that bought U.K. oil explorer Ithaca Energy Inc. this year, is seeking a London listing to help further overseas expansion.

“If Delek Group wants to be international, we have to be traded on an international exchange and I think London is one of the good places to be in,” Asaf Bartfeld, the company’s president and chief executive officer, said Monday in an interview. “In the near future, we plan to be listed in London.”

M&A Watch: PICO’s Cheiron acquires 50% stake in Sahara North Bahariya Ltd - ENTERPRISE/ AL BORSA

Wednesday, 10 May 2017

M&A WATCH- Our friends at PICO are on a tear this week: PICO Group subsidiary Cheiron Egypt acquired a 50% stake in Sahara North Bahariya Ltd for USD 83 mn from EFG Capital Partners Fund III, sources close to the matter told Al Borsa on Tuesday. Cheiron reached financial close on the transaction earlier this week after winning approval from the state’s Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation. Sahara North Bahariya owns the North Bahariya oil concession in the Western Desert. The news comes on the heels of news that Cheiron also acquired 100% of Engie’s West El Burullus gas concession earlier this week.

Is the EastMed gas pipeline just another EU pipe dream? - BRUEGEL

MAY 10, 2017
Simone Tagliapietra

Is the EastMed pipeline really a feasible project? The answer to this question is not simple, but the EastMed plan sounds unconvincing.


On Monday 3 April, the energy ministers of Cyprus, Greece, Israel and Italy met in Tel Aviv, warmly watched by the EU Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy. They had gathered to sign a preliminary agreement to advance a gas pipeline project aimed at linking their four countries: the EastMed pipeline. The project is ambitious, enormous and – at least today – probably unnecessary.

At first glance the EastMed is an impressive idea. The pipeline would transport 10 billion cubic metres per year (Bcm/y) of gas from eastern Mediterranean gas fields to Greece and Italy. About 1900km long, and reaching depths below 3km, it would be the world’s longest and deepest subsea pipeline. The estimated cost is €6.2 billion.

But for those who follow European energy security, Monday’s ceremony brought a kind of déjà vu. It was difficult not to remember a similar ministerial ceremony that took place in Vienna in June 2006, proclaiming next steps for the Nabucco pipeline.

Provocations will not alter energy plans - CYPRUS MAIL

May 9, 2017
Elias Hazou

Cyprus is determined to press forward with its energy plans irrespective of any Turkish provocations, energy minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis reiterated on Tuesday.

He was speaking to reporters following a closed-doors briefing to MPs on the state of play regarding the government’s offshore hydrocarbons programme.

Asked about the dispatch of the Turkish seismic survey vessel Barbaros Hayreddin Pasa, as well as Turkey’s naval military drills off Cyprus, Lakkotrypis said these moves would not perturb Nicosia.

“The answer is clear… the procedures regarding our energy programme are not affected,” he said.

“Turkey is provoking us and will continue to do so, but we shall continue doing the self-evident, which is to exercise our sovereign rights, no more, no less.”

PICO’s Cheiron Egypt acquires West El Burullus gas concession from Engie - ENTERPRISE

Tuesday, 9 May 2017

PICO Group subsidiary Cheiron Egypt has acquired 100% of Engie’s West El Burullus (WEB) gas concession in a transaction announced yesterday. WEB is located in shallow offshore Mediterranean waters with recoverable reserves of c.200 bcf gas and 3 mn bbl of condensates. 

BNP Paribas, financial advisor on the transaction, said in an emailed statement that “WEB is targeting plateau production of 100 mcf/d with first gas in 2020.” The transaction, it said, supports Engie’s “global strategy to exit E&P sector and focus on renewable energies,” while PICO will diversify its “Egyptian E&P asset base into new geological basins with higher gas component. BNP Paribas invited more than 50 bidders to take part in the process, with more than 10 signing confidentiality agreements. The transaction value has not been released. PICO, which controls assets in Egypt, Romania and Mexico, is owned by the Diab family of Cairo.

OPEC's burden grows, as Libyan output reaches highest mark since 2014 - WORLD OIL / BLOOMBERG

5/8/2017

Salma El Wardany 

CAIRO (Bloomberg) -- Libya is pumping the most oil since October 2014 as the OPEC member restores output amid progress in mending the nation’s political divisions. The increase adds pressure on the world’s biggest producers who just signaled they may extend production cuts as oil slumps.

The North African country’s production has reached about 780,000 bpd, according to a person familiar with the situation who asked not to be identified for lack of authorization to speak to the media. Libya was producing about 700,000 bpd at the end of April, Jadalla Alaokali, a board member at state producer the National Oil Corp., said then.

Jordan refiner lets contract for facility upgrade - OIL GAS JOURNAL / HYDROCARBON PROCESSING

HOUSTON, 05/08/2017

By OGJ editors

Jordan Petroleum Refinery Co. Ltd. (JPRC), the sole refining company of Jordan, has let a contract to Honeywell UOP to facilitate a $1.6-billion expansion of its refinery at Zarqa, 35 km east of Amman.

The expansion will increase the capacity of the facility to 120,000 b/d and will allow JPRC to upgrade the quality of its product to meet Euro-V emissions specifications.

JPRC Chief Executive Officer Abdul Karim Alaween said the upgrade is vital as it “will help us meet the rising demand for fuel, which is growing at an average of 3% every year.”

POGC in Talks for Libya Return - PETROLEUM AFRICA

Monday, May 8, 2017

The head of Libya’s National Oil Corp. (NOC), Mustafa Sanalla, and chairman of the Polish Oil and Gas Co. (POGC), Filip Moczydlowski, met at the end of April to discuss POGC resuming its operations in the country. The head of Libya’s Mustafa Sanalla, has again had talks with the chairman of POGC, Filip Moczydlowski, and its general manager Szymon Drzewakowski, with a view to it resuming operations in the country. The discussions took place at the end of last month but have only been announced today.

POGC has invested over $136 million in its two concessions in the Murzuk Basin. The company’s investment led to gas discovered on Area 113/1 in early-February 2014.

Energean to tender for $500m FPSO - TRADEWINDS / UPSTREAM

FPSO Mystras operating offshore Nigeria

May 8th, 2017 12:56 GMT
Gary Dixon

Greek group wants unit for Karish gas project off Israel.

Greece's Energean Oil & Gas is tendering for a new $500m FPSO.

The company wants the unit for its $1.3bn Karish gas and condensate project off Israel.

The FPSO must be ready by 2020 when the first gas is pumped.

Energean chief executive Mathios Rigas told TradeWinds' sister publication Upstream:

"I think we will be looking to go to the market probably in the summer, towards the start of the third quarter. If we are able to contract yards soon we will get a lot better prices rather than waiting."

ADB agrees to lend $500 mln to Azeri gas project - REUTERS

Sun May 7, 2017 | 9:19am EDTReporting by Nailia Bagirova; writing by Andrey Ostroukh; editing by Jason Neely

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide a $500 million loan to Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz 2 project, the Azeri finance ministry said on Sunday.

The ADB said earlier this year it was considering lending money to Azerbaijan to help fund the second stage of development of the Shah Deniz natural gas project in the Caspian Sea.

On Sunday, the ADB and representatives of Azerbaijan signed an agreement in Yokohama, Japan, under which the Southern Gas Corridor will receive funds to develop Shah Deniz 2, the ministry said in a message sent to Reuters.

Nooros gas field to produce 1.2 bcf/d before the end of August -El Molla - ENTERPRISE / YOUM7

Sunday, 7 May 2017

Production from Eni’s Nooros gas field will reach 1.2 bcf/d before the end of August, up from a current 920-970 mcf/d, Oil Minister Tarek El Molla tells Youm7. 

According to El Molla, the company is in the final phases of drilling to expand production from the field.

TEKMOR Note: In July 2016, Ieoc through Petrobel has announced the discovery of the Nooros field located in the Abu Madi West development lease in the Nile Delta which is estimated to contain about 530 bcf (approx. 15ncm or 0,5tcf) of gas in place, beside to associate condensates.

Gov’t signs-off on USD 500 mn Sonker investment - ENTERPRISE / AL MASRY AL YOUM

 Sunday, 7 May 2017

The government signed an agreement activating the financing of Sonker’s liquid bulk terminal in Ain Sokhna, Al Masry Al Youm reported. 

Sonker is investing USD 500 mn to construct and operate a bulk-liquids terminal for the import and storage of gasoil and LPG in the third basin of Ain Sokhna Port. 

USD 320 mn of the project’s cost is being financed by IFC, EBRD and CIB. 

Amiral is providing the rest of the financing.

AMOC to buy condensates from Dana Gas - ENTERPRISE / AL SHOROUK

Sunday, 7 May 2017

Alexandria Mineral Oils Company (AMOC) has reached an agreement to buy condensates produced by Dana Gas, according to Al Shorouk. 

The agreement will be signed within a week, AMOC’s head said. AMOC aims to refine 1,500 boe a day of Dana Gas’ condensates in its refineries for two months, increasing the amount to 4,000 boe a day thereafter.