Will Lebanon tap its oil and gas wealth? - AL JAZEERA

11 Mar 2017 13:06 GMT

A nine minute video examines Beirut's ambitions to tap into its energy sector and the challenges ahead.

Years of war and political instability have disrupted Lebanon's ambitions to tap into its energy sector.

Bidding for the right to develop oil and gas fields buried offshore is due to start later this year amid hopes the discoveries will help transform the country's economy.

Lebanon, which has the highest debt as a share of annual economic output among Arab states, regularly suffers from power outages.

Oil companies will have to invest millions of dollars in exploration and drilling, but transporting the gas to consumers could prove tricky due to maritime border disputes and political uncertainty in the region.

Neighbouring countries, including Egypt, Israel and Cyprus, have already started production and some fear Lebanon may never catch up.

Imtiaz Tyab reports from Tripoli, in northern Lebanon, about the challenges ahead.

"Once we start drilling, we'll know how much reserves we have, but we should be very prudent and not talk about numbers and figures," said Laury Haytayan, senior MENA officer with the London-based Natural Resource Governance Institute.

"If we want to export, we need to find the right buyers - gas needs buyers before we even starting production. This will be the greatest challenge," Haytayan added.

"The safest and wisest option for Lebanon is to use the gas to meet its domestic needs."

Watch the video here.

10,000 Olive Trees to Be Moved for Gas Pipe in Puglia - OLIVE OIL TIMES / REUTERS

March 10, 2017

Julie Al-Zoubi

Ten thousand olive trees, including some as old as 400 years, will be moved from a UNESCO-recognized olive grove in Puglia, as work on the $40 billion Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) finally gets underway.

On 7th March a TAP spokesman told Reuters, “We’re going to start moving the olives in a few days.” He confirmed that the company had complied with all the regulations required to proceed with uprooting the trees. Work was due to begin on TAP last year but was delayed by strong local opposition including protests.

The spokesman confirmed that administration procedures for the removal of the trees were complete. He added that the required health checks on the trees were underway.

Total-Eni forge Cyprus alliance - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

March 10, 2017

Italian energy major Eni has finalised a farm-in agreement with France’s Total to acquire 50% participating interest of Block 11, offshore Cyprus.

The agreement, in which Total remains operator of the block, has been approved by the Cabinet.

Under this deal Eni further reinforces its own position in Cyprus exploration, acquiring the right of exploring an area of 2,215 km2, nearby the super giant Zohr discovery in the Egyptian offshore.

The rights on Block 11 were assigned by the Republic of Cyprus to Total back in 2013 at the conclusion of the second international bid round. The exploration well is expected to be drilled in the Block within 2017.

Rosneft and Russia's Evolving Oil Strategy Explained - THE DIPLOMAT

March 10, 2017
Nicholas Trickett

Russia’s recent deals in the Middle East aren’t just about expanding its influence, they’re part of a larger strategy.

Rosneft is deploying its preferred long-term prepayment model to political effect in Kurdistan and Libya, distributing risks between producers and consumers and taking advantage of its access to state money. That model has also earned it closer ties to trading houses like Glencore and Trafigura. The firm applied the same approach to securing a customer for its Venezuelan production—another risky market—in India with its acquisition of Essar Oil.

Watchdog suspends Azerbaijan, EU gas pipeline loans threatened - CLIMATE HOME

Parts of the Southern Gas Corridor are already under
construction in Turkey. (Photo: Tanap)

10/03/2017, 12:59pm
Karl Mathiesen

Billions in development loans at risk after international human rights watchdog strips Azeri membership for failure to increase transparency

A human rights watchdog suspended Azerbaijan’s membership on Thursday, casting doubt on billions of dollars worth of loans being considered for a pipeline linking the country’s gas fields to the EU.

The government of Ilham Aliyev has been repeatedly asked by the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) to lift restrictions on civil society organisations. On Thursday the EITI board, which meets in Oslo, decided that the regime had run out of time.

Turkey, Russia to jointly establish investment fund - DAILY SABAH / ANADOLU AGENCY

MOSCOW, 10.3.2017

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said a significant number of agreements have been prepared for the Turkey-Russia High-Level Cooperation Council (HLCC) meeting in Moscow today.

He revealed that the agreements, set to be signed at the meeting, will not just address the economy, but will also deal with technical and cultural fields.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) ahead of the HLCC meeting that will bring together President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Minister Novak highlighted that commercial and economic cooperation between Turkey and Russia has gradually recovered after a series of unfortunate events.

Israel Navy gearing up for its latest mission – protecting Mediterranean gas rigs - HAARETZ

March 09, 2017
Gili Cohen 

It will take two and half years for custom-designed missile boats being built in Germany to arrive. Until then, the navy is not resting on its laurels regarding this strategic economic asset.

For the sailors serving on the Israel Navy’s missile corvettes, the latest revelations concerning the bid for purchasing drilling rig-protecting boats, associated with the procurement of new submarines, have brought about a surprising turn of events. The combat mission of these seamen, which usually remains secretive and submerged, has become an open topic of conversation.

‘Block 11 looks extremely promising’, gas expert says - CYPRUS MAIL

Cyprus' president Nicos Anastasiades (left) w/ European Commission's
president Jean-Claude Juncker

March 9, 2017
Elias Hazou

The partnership between French oil and gas major Total and Italy’s ENI in offshore Block 11 is an extremely significant development as it greatly increases the chances for a natural gas discovery in the licensed acreage, an energy analyst has told the Cyprus Mail.

“We have here a combination of Total’s technical know-how with ENI’s intimate knowledge of the proximate acreage after their discovery of the Zohr gas field in Egyptian waters,” Charles Ellinas said.

The expert confirmed reports that Block 11 is looking extremely promising.

To date, four or five targets have been identified there, he added.

Steel producers promised lower gas prices come December, head of FEI’s steel division says - ENTERPRISE / AL BORSA

Thursday, 9 March 2017

Zohr is a godsend to industry: The government has reportedly once again promised steel producers that it will reduce their natural gas prices to USD 4.5 from USD 7 per mmBtu by the end of 2017 once capacities from new field discoveries come onstream, according to the head of the steel division at the Federation of Egyptian Industries (FEI) Gamal El Garhy, Al Borsa reports. We would usually take this with a grain of salt, but with Zohr coming online, industry appears to be getting a reprieve from higher gas prices. 

ENI-TOTAL synergy on block “11” the best that could happen, says Executive Director of CHC - FAMAGUSTA GAZETTE / CNA

Thursday, 09 March, 2017

Speaking to CNA, he also said that the synergy between energy companies ENI and TOTAL is the best that could happen to the block `11`.

Executive Director of Cyprus Hydrocarbons Company (CHC) Panos Kelamis said Wednesday that he was very optimistic as to the prospects of Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), following the successful completion of negotiations for the third licensing round.

Speaking to CNA, he also said that the synergy between energy companies ENI and TOTAL is the best that could happen to the block `11`.

"The prospects are very good," noted the Greek former staff member of Saudi Aramco, referring to the successful completion of negotiations for licensing of blocks "6”, "8” and "10” of the Cyprus EEZ, announced Tuesday by the Minister of Energy George Lakkotrypis. He added that from his background on the exploration he is "too optimistic", but noted that "we should all have patience."

Exxon eyes Israel after Cyprus win - GLOBES

9 Mar, 2017 14:09
Nati Yefet

After winning a Cypriot government tender, Exxon Mobile has expressed interest in bidding for Israeli natural gas tenders.
Minister of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources Yuval Steinitz met last week with senior executives from Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell during his visit to the US. The minister's associates say that while Royal Dutch Shell will probably not take part in the new tender for oil and gas exploration licenses in Israeli waters, the Exxon Mobil executives came equipped with a great deal of relevant information, and expressed interest in the tender.

SOFAZ allocated over $1B for Southern Gas Corridor - TREND NEWS AGENCY

9 March 2017 08:30 (UTC+04:00)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Maksim Tsurkov

The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) allocated more than $1.23 billion or 1.53 million Azerbaijani manats for the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) project in 2014-2016, says a report on the activity of Azerbaijan’s Cabinet of Ministers in 2016.

The report says that in 2016, in order to finance the Azerbaijani government’s share in the Southern Gas Corridor CJSC, SOFAZ transferred 797.4 million manats ($495.2 million) to the country’s Economy Ministry.

Expenditures for this purpose accounted for 33.9 percent of SOFAZ’s planned budget.

RPT-BUZZ-Rosneft buys Egyptian crude for first time in tender - REUTERS

Wed Mar 8, 2017 6:08pm GMTReporting By Julia Payne; Editing by Susan Fenton

The trading arm of Russia's state oil firm Rosneft bought three cargoes of Egypt's heavy sour Ras Gharib grade, the first time the company has bought Egyptian crude, trading sources familiar with the matter said.

Geneva-based Rosneft Trading won the cargoes loading in April, May and June via a sell tender by Egypt's state owned EGPC that closed on Feb. 24.

EGPC sold a total of seven cargoes, Swiss trader Petraco won the remaining four.

Rosneft is now sourcing light crude grades for its German refinery after a deal with partner BP expired last year.

Energy diversification top priority for Turkey, Minister Albayrak says - DAILY SABAH / ANADOLU AGENCY

AA Photo

HOUSTON, TX, 8 March 2018

Turkey's main goal in the energy sector is diversification, Energy Minister Berat Albayrak told a U.S. conference Tuesday.

"More than half of our electricity generation is from gas," he told the IHS CERAWeek energy conference in Houston, Texas. "This can't be sustainable, so we changed this strategy.

"We are aiming to diversify our natural gas portfolio in the following years."

The last 15 years have seen Turkey's GDP rise from $200 billion to more than $800 billion, while public debt to GDP ratio shrunk from 80 percent in 2002 to around 30 percent today.

"You have to invest in energy to meet this growth and your growth targets," Albayrak said.

Cyprus agrees gas exploration deals - EXPATICA / AFP

Oil firms active in the Cypriot EEZ at the end of negotiations
regarding Cyprus' 3rd Licensing Round

7th March 2017

US energy giant ExxonMobil, Qatar Petroleum, Italy's ENI and France's Total have successfully bid for rights to explore for oil and gas off the coast of Cyprus, officials said Tuesday.

The contracts, part of the Mediterranean island's third licensing round, will be approved by the cabinet on March 17, Cyprus trade minister George Lakkotrypis told reporters.

ENI and Total jointly negotiated a licence for a block off the island's south coast while ENI secured another on its own. ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum successfully bid for a third.

"This is a very important development for both the Cypriot Exclusive Economic Zone and the eastern Mediterranean in general," said Lakkotrypis.

"It reinforces the prospect for hydrocarbons in the area," he added. "You will find that companies are quite optimistic as to the prospects for the eastern Mediterranean, and more specifically the Cypriot EEZ."

Some of the firms could begin exploratory drilling this year, Lakkotrypis said.

Eni finalizes farm-in agreement with Total, acquiring interest offshore Cyprus - WORLD OIL

March/7/2017

SAN DONATO MILANESE -- Eni announces that has finalized a farm-in agreement with Total to acquire 50% participating interest of Block 11, offshore Cyprus.

The agreement, by which Total remains the Operator of the block, has been approved by the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Cyprus. With this transaction Eni further reinforces its own position in the Country, acquiring the right of exploring an area of 2,215 km2, nearby the super giant Zohr discovery in the Egyptian offshore.

The rights on Block 11 were assigned by the Republic of Cyprus to Total back in 2013 at the conclusion of the second international bid round held by the Country. The exploration well is expected to be drilled in the Block within 2017.

The disputed gas fields in the eastern Mediterranean - AL JAZEERA

07 Mar 2017 19:14 GMT

The eastern Mediterranean sea has several large natural gas deposits. The fields could be worth billions of dollars.

Lebanon and Israel have been involved in a maritime dispute regarding the exact location of their sea borders. The contested area is important to both countries because it might harbour natural-gas fields.

Israel has one of the largest gas fields in the region, the Leviathan field. Parts of that field could potentially extend into territory claimed by both Israel and Lebanon [TEKMOR Note: Misleading]. This gas deposit is so big, it could potentially lead to Israel becoming an energy exporter.

Meanwhile, Egypt has what has been called a "supergiant gas field" within its waters, the Zohr gas field.

Still, Egypt might face a gas-energy crisis despite being one of the largest gas-producing countries in Africa, as an investigation by Al Jazeera showed [TEKMOR Note: Old news].

US-Israel-Greece poised for annual maritime drill in Eastern Mediterranean - DEFENSE NEWS

The Hellenic Navy Psara, F-454, front, sails past the Israeli Navy
Keshet, Saar 4.5, while transiting the Mediterranean Sea as seen from
the bridge wing of the U.S. destroyer Porter during Exercise Noble
Dina on April 4, 2016. Photo Credit, MC3 Robert S. Price/US Navy

March 7, 2017
Barbara Opall-Rome

ISRAELI NAVY HEADQUARTERS, Haifa – The trilateral Noble Dina exercise between the American, Israeli and Hellenic navies will begin later this month, with nearly a dozen surface ships, submarines and related air assets scheduled to engage in joint reconnaissance, counterterror and antisubmarine warfare training.

Cyprus will participate as an observer in the annual three-way drill, which begins in Greece and will conclude in mid-April here at the Israeli Navy headquarters in Haifa, said Commander Assaf Boneh, the head of international cooperation for the Israeli sea service.

“It’s one of our most important exercises that allows us to hone our proficiencies in very complex scenarios,” Boneh told Defense News. “We’ll be training in a vast area from Greece to Israel, and this gives us a lot of room to practice multiple scenarios that require jointness.”

Greece says East Med gas pipeline to Europe feasible - NEW EUROPE

MARCH 7, 2017, 15:25
Kostis Geropoulos

Project plans to connect Levantine Basin with Cyprus, Greece

DELPHI, Greece – A pipeline planned to transport natural gas from the recently discovered fields in Eastern Mediterranean to Europe is feasible and viable, the CEO of Greece’s Public Gas Corporation has said.

“There has been a lot of speculation over the past years, people talking of ‘Pharaonic’ projects. I was personally a bit hesitant. Now, we have conclusion of the studies that this pipeline is technically feasible, economically viable and commercially competitive,” Theodoros Kitsakos said, referring to the Eastern Mediterranean Pipeline (East Med).

Addressing an energy panel on the third day of the Delphi Economic Forum on March 4, Kitsakos displayed slides for the first time in public showing the technical feasibility of the East Med pipeline. “From a technical background all steps are quite feasible. There is only one small piece of less than 10 kilometres just before the island of Crete where the depth is quite high,” he said. “But technology has advanced so we can cover this also so the whole route is guaranteed,” he said.

Israel's Shapir Weighing Bid for Natural Gas License Tender - BLOOMBERG

7 March 2017, 11:39 am EETYaacov Benmeleh and David Wainer

• Company may need to find a partner with energy expertise
• Shapir shares have outperformed global peers in last year

Shapir Engineering and Industry Ltd., which develops residential, commercial and industrial construction projects in Israel, is considering expanding its operations into offshore energy exploration.

The Petach Tikvah, Israel-based company is mulling a bid to drill for oil and gas in the 24 new blocks opened for exploration in the country’s economic waters, a company spokeswoman told Bloomberg. 

ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum the new entrants in Cyprus' EEZ

George Lakkotrypis, the Cypriot Minister of Energy, tweeted "Significant developments in #Cyprus oil & gas. Shaping a new picture in Cyprus #EEZ and impacting the potential of the #EastMed as a whole."

The map seen here which accompanied the tweet shows the licensees at the successful conclusion of the negotiations pertaining to Cyprus' 3rd licensing round.

New entrants are ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum in block 10. ENI, already present in the Cypriot EEZ, picks up blcoks 6 and 8, the former in an alliance with Total.

In a separate development, block 11 was farmed out with the block's rights now shared by ENi (50%) and Total (50%).

National Dialogue “only way out of political stalemate in Libya” Egypt insists after LNA oil crescent reverse - LIBYA HERALD

Tunis, 6 March 2017

Egypt has insisted that dialogue is the only way Libya can extract itself from the current political crisis. Resuming the UN-brokered Libya Dialogue was of critical importance and would help safeguard the interests of its people, Egypt’s National Committee on Libya said stated today.

Libya, it added, had an “historic opportunity” to reach a political consensus bereft of outside interference to end the suffering of its people and ensure stability.

The committee is headed by Egypt’s Chief of Staff, Lieutenant-General Mahmoud Hegazy.

MPs present wish-list of how to spend future gas revenue - CYPRUS MAIL

March 6, 2017
Elias Hazou

MPs on Monday began an article-by-article discussion of a government bill governing the establishment and operation of a National Investment Fund to manage future hydrocarbons proceeds.

The representatives of the parties each had their own ideas as to how the funds should be invested.

Akel [left] called for the addition of a reference where part of the funds would be diverted to ‘public-interest’ investments.

The party would also like to insert a provision allowing funds to be invested in developing the hydrocarbons industry on the island; as it stands, the bill makes no such reference.

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.

Leviathan off the starting blocks - IN CYPRUS / CYPRUS WEEKLY

March 5, 2017
Charles Ellinas

Phase 1A of the Leviathan gasfield is finally off the starting blocks. Noble Energy and its partners reached FID on 23 February for Phase 1A, which involves the production of 12bcm/yr starting end of 2019. This can only be seen as positive news for the Leviathan partners and the Israeli gas market.

Leviathan was discovered in 2010 and it is estimated to hold 622bcm of recoverable gross natural gas resources. It is owned by Noble Energy with 39.66%, Delek Drilling with 22.67%, Avner with 22.67% and Ratio with 15%.

In the following, I analyse the FID decision, describe the deal and its potential impact on Energean and discuss the implications on East Med gas.

Towards a Balkan gas hub: the interplay between pipeline gas, LNG and renewable energy in South East Europe - OXFORD INSTITUTE FOR ENERGY STUDIES

February 2017
Aleksandar Kovacevic

Preface by Howard Rogers - The OIES Natural Gas Programme has published four previous papers on South Eastern European gas, two of which were by Aleksandar Kovacevic. This paper addresses the potential for the region to evolve to a situation where a more diverse set of gas supply options established a degree of competition through gas on gas pricing and an emergent trading activity. 

Egypt inaugurates major gas-fired power plants - CONSTRUCTION WEEK ONLINE

Mar 5, 2017 James Morgan

The first phases of Egypt’s New Capital and Burullus power plants have been officially inaugurated.

The projects, which are being built by a consortium comprising Siemens, Orascom, and Elsewedy Electric, will be the largest gas-fired combined cycle power plants (CCPPs) upon completion.

The consortium has already succeeded in connecting 2,400MW to Egypt’s national grid through the power plants, exceeding delivery targets by 20%.

Once complete, each power plant will generate a total of 4,800MW.

MENA countries need to get more creative when exploring for oil - THE NATIONAL

March 5, 2017 01:55 PM

Robin Mills

By August 2015, Eni seemed out of luck in the eastern Mediterranean. Two wells drilled off the shore of Cyprus had been failures. Several other companies looked at data on its deepwater block north of Egypt, where Shell had sunk 10 wells in previous years without any real success, but decided against taking a share. There was a promising deeper structure with untested geology, but the Italian company would have to go it alone.

Eni drilled in almost a kilometre-and-a-half of water, then through more than 4,000 metres of sand, shales and salt. During the Miocene period 6 million years ago, the entire Mediterranean dried up, leaving a thick layer of salt – ideal for trapping any oil or gas that formed below it.

'Cyprus deal could speed up Turkey energy project' - ARUTZ SHEVA 7 / ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS

AFP, 05/03/17 12:10
A Cyprus peace deal would speed up Israel's project to provide gas to Turkey, the new Israeli ambassador to Ankara said Wednesday.

Eitan Naeh became Israel's first ambassador in Turkey in December when relations resumed in the summer after a six-year diplomatic rift.

"We think that the solution to the Cyprus problem can speed up the energy project," Naeh said, adding it was a "win-win" for everyone.

"A Cyprus solution will make life easier for all," he told reporters during a briefing in Ankara.

Naeh was referring to exporting gas from the Leviathan field off its coast, discovered in 2010 and set to begin production in 2019.

The best way for gas to be exported between Turkey and Israel would be a pipeline via the territorial waters of Cyprus.

Libyan strongman's forces lose control of key oil export terminal - FRANCE24

2017-March-04

The forces of eastern Libya's military strongman Khalifa Haftar have lost control of a key oil export terminal they had seized last year, a spokesman conceded on Saturday.

Colonel Ahmad al-Mismari said that the rival forces had overrun the main airfield in the oil port of Ras Lanuf and identified them as Islamists of the Benghazi Defence Brigades.

An array of forces, most of them loyal to the UN-backed government in Tripoli, have been involved in efforts to oust Haftar from the oil ports, whose seizure enabled him to pose a major challenge to its authority.

But the Tripoli government on Friday evening denied any involvement in the renewed offensive on the oil ports, condemning it as a "military escalation".

The forces involved in the latest assault are a mixture of Islamist militias, eastern tribes opposed to Haftar and members of the Petroleum Facilities Guard which controlled the ports before Haftar's takeover.

TurkStream to make large contribution to energy security in Greece - WORLD PIPELINES

Friday, 03 March 2017 09:36

Stephanie Roker

A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Giorgos Tsipras, Secretary General for International Economic Relations at the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, took place at the Company’s headquarters on 1 March.

The parties expressed their appreciation for the current state of the Russian-Greek partnership in the energy sector and discussed its development prospects. A focus was placed on efforts for securing transit of Russian gas across Greece to Italy as part of the TurkStream project.

OMV agrees to sell Turkish unit Petrol Ofisi to Vitol for $1.45 billion - REUTERS

Logo of Austrian oil and gas group OMV at Vienna gas station
on November 9, 2016 REUTERS,Heinz-Peter Bader

Fri Mar 3, 2017 | 5:44pm ESTReporting by Maria Sheahan and Shadia Nasralla; editing by Grant McCool

Austrian energy group OMV (OMVV.VI) said it agreed to sell its Turkish fuel supply and distribution unit Petrol Ofisi to Vitol Investment Partnership, managed by the Swiss-based commodities firm Vitol VITOLV.UL, for 1.37 billion euros ($1.45 billion).

Saudi Aramco and the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) had also placed bids for Petrol Ofisi, sources familiar with the matter said. OMV counted the Turkish petrol station chain as one of its non-core assets it is shedding to generate cash.

Cyprus and Egypt sign series of bilateral deals - CYPRUS MAIL

Cyprus Finance Minister Harris Georghiades and Egypt's Minister
for Investment and International Cooperation Dr Sahar Nasr

MARCH 3RD, 2017

CYPRUS and Egypt on Friday signed a series of agreements and MoUs to enhance bilateral ties and further their strategic partnership.

During a ceremony in Nicosia, Finance minister Harris Georgiades, and his Egyptian counterpart Sahar Nasr, signed an agreement in the field of labour.

The Egyptian minister also signed an agreement with Transport minister Marios Demetriades on the protection and return of stolen or illicitly imported, exported or transferred cultural property.

MoUs were also signed with the Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency and the
Chamber of Commerce and Industry with the Egyptian businessmen’s association.

Georgiades spoke of “another important step in enhancing the political and economic ties” between the two countries.

“We consider our relationship with Egypt as one of strategic importance. We consider Egypt a valued partner and we remain committed to further expanding and enhancing our already excellent and closed ties and today we have made an important step in this direction,” he said.

US backs Greece’s efforts to build EU energy connections

MARCH 3, 2017, 18:42
Kostis Geropoulos

DELPHI, Greece – The United States strongly supports Greece’s efforts to build its energy connections with Europe, US Ambassador to Athens Geoffrey Pyatt told the Delphi Economic Forum on March 3.

“Projects like TAP (the Trans Adriatic Pipeline), the Bulgaria-Greece-Interconnector (IGB), Revythousa (LNG terminal) and the proposed FSRU (Floating Storage Regasification Unit) near Alexandroupolis all help cement Greece’s critical role in transforming the energy security in southeast Europe and will help drive economic growth in the years ahead,” Pyatt said.

Newly found reserves in the East Mediterranean could also help boost Europe’s energy security. A solution to the Cyprus issue could facilitate the export of hydrocarbons from the East Med, German Marshall Fund Vice President Ian Lesser told New Europe on the sidelines of the Delphi forum.

Business in Brief: Pipeline for Gas to Turkey Could Be Ready in Four Years, Delek-Avner CEO Says - HAARETZ / REUTERS

TheMarker Mar 03, 2017 12:10 AM

Pipeline for gas to Turkey could be ready in four years, Delek-Avner CEO says
An underwater pipeline connecting Israel’s massive offshore natural gas field Leviathan to Turkey could be built within four years [TEKMOR note: special emphasis on 'could'], one of the partners in the project said Thursday. Israel has been pursuing several regional export deals for its newfound gas reserves and the Leviathan group is moving ahead with development plans since making its final $3.75 billion final investment decision last week.

Yossi Abu, CEO of Delek Drilling and Avner Oil, said a new 500-kilometer (310-mile) pipeline could have gas flowing to Turkey by the end of 2020, about a year after it comes online for the Israeli market. “This is the target,” he told reporters at a news briefing.

Farstad PSVs start support work offshore Egypt - OFFSHORE MAGAZINE

MARCH/02/2017
Offshore staff

AALESUND, Norway – Farstad Shipping has won a contract to support a field development project offshore Egypt from an unnamed international operator.

The platform supply vessels Far Server and Far Serenade should have started the 3.5-month campaign, with options to extend by 30 days.

Work starts on Leviathan field’s first phase - OIL & GAS JOURNAL

HOUSTON, MARCH/02/2017
By OGJ editors

Wood Group has begun detailed engineering for the 30,000-ton fixed platform to be installed offshore Israel to handle production from deepwater Leviathan natural gas field (OGJ Online, Feb. 23, 2017).

Operator Noble Energy Inc. has drilled two of the four wells to be completed subsea in about 5,200 ft of water during the first development phase. Each will be able to produce more than 300 MMcfd of gas.

Twin 73-mile, 18-in. flowlines will carry production to the platform, which will be set in 270 ft of water about 6 miles from shore.

Subsea 7 engineering teams start on Atoll project offshore Egypt - OFFSHORE MAGAZINE

March/02/2017
Offshore staff

LUXEMBOURG – Subsea 7 says the last stage of the offshore campaign is under way in the Egyptian sector of the Mediterranean Sea for Phase One of the West Nile Delta project on the Taurus and Libra fields.

Fabrication has started for Phase Two on the Giza, Fayoum, and Raven fields. The company’s work on the East Nile Delta project is substantially completed and its engineering teams have mobilized for the newly awarded Atoll project.

Offshore Brazil, the last of the company’s newbuild Brazilian PLSVs, Seven Cruzeiro, started a long-term contract in January.

In the UK North Sea, preparations have continued for installation of pipeline bundles for the Culzean, Callater, and Western Isles projects.

Subsea 7 is cautiously optimistic about future prospects. It says the oil and gas market has achieved a degree of stability in recent months and there are indications that project sanctions will increase.

Israel Quietly Begins Exporting Natural Gas to Jordan Amid Political Sensitivities - HAARETZ

King Abdullah II of Jordan on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.,
February 3, 2015. Allison Shelley, AFP

Mar 02, 2017 12:39 AM
Eran Azran 

To keep the Israeli side at arm's length, the gas is technically being sold to the Jordanians by an American company.

Israel has begun quietly exporting natural gas to Jordan after two Jordanian companies – Arab Potash and Jordan Bromine – were connected to Israel’s national pipeline network.

The deliveries to the two companies, which operate plants on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea, began in January, but all the sides involved opted to keep a low profile because of the political sensitivities in Jordan about doing business with Israel.

State-owned Arab Potash and Jordan Bromine signed an accord three years ago to buy the gas from Israel’s Tamar gas field in a 15-year, $500 million deal, with the U.S. State Department acting as a go-between.

RAE summons DESFA over LNG unit upgrade delay and cost - ENERGY PRESS

02/March/2017

Despite announcing its completion of a 25.1 million-euro investment, DESFA, the natural gas grid operator, has failed to satisfy RAE, the Regulatory Authority for Energy, which summoned operator officials for a hearing on project delays and costs concerning the grid’s infrastructure.

Concerns raised by the recent energy crisis prompted the authority to make this move. RAE has requested further details on the reasons behind project delays, according to energypress sources.

Wood Group begins detailed engineering of Leviathan for Noble Energy - WORLD OIL

March/2/2017

HOUSTON, Texas -- Wood Group recently completed the seven-month front-end engineering design (FEED) for Noble Energy’s Leviathan Field Development Project in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and has started the detailed engineering for the platform, including the topsides and jacket. The FEED and detail design has a total contract value of approximately $95 million.

The estimated 30,000-ton fixed platform is being initially designed to process 1.2 Bcfd of gas, expandable to 2.1 Bcfd to accommodate future production. The platform will be installed in an 86-m water depth.

The Leviathan project adds to Wood Group’s portfolio of projects executed for Noble Energy. Wood Group previously designed the Tamar platform topsides; the Tamar onshore compression plant which receives natural gas from the Mari-B and Tamar fields in the Mediterranean Sea; and the topsides and jacket for the Alen production platform, offshore Equatorial Guinea.

Egypt's Sisi and Germany's Merkel to inaugurate megaproject in Egypt - AHRAM ONLINE

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) and Egyptian President Abdel
Fattah El-Sisi (R) in Berlin, May 2015 (Reuters)

Thursday 2 Mar 2017
Mahmoud Aziz

The two leaders will inaugurate the first phase of a Siemens project to build three new power plants in Egypt

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is set to arrive in Cairo Thursday on a two-day visit to meet with Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, and to inaugurate with her counterpart the first phase of a Siemens megaproject.

The two leaders are scheduled to hold a press conference shortly after their meeting.

Sisi and Merkel will inaugurate the first phase of a project, run by the German company Siemens, to build three new power plants in Egypt.

Arbitrator rules Egypt must compensate EMG - GLOBES

2 Mar, 2017 15:56
Aviv Levy

The international arbitration panel ruled that Egypt failed to protect the Sinai pipeline from terrorists.

An announcement published yesterday by Ampal-American Israel Corporation concerning the arbitration ruling issued in the past few days by the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in Washington DC is likely to give hope to the company's bondholders. The company went bankrupt under controlling shareholder Yosef Maiman, with debts of nearly NIS 1 billion.

Dana Gas provides market update on its drilling program in Egypt - DANA GAS

Sharjah, UAE 2 March 2017

Dana Gas, the Middle East’s leading regional private sector natural gas company, provides a market update on its BP-operated Mocha-1 well, drilled in the El Matariya (Block 3) onshore concession in Egypt. 

The Mocha-1 exploration well on Block 3 has been completed. The well reached the top of the targeted Oligocene at a depth of 5,375 metres and reached total depth at 5,940 metres, making it the deepest onshore Nile Delta well drilled to date. The well was drilled through the Messinian (conventional) to Oligocene (deep) targets and encountered hydrocarbons. Whilst the Messinian objective encountered wet gas, the primary Oligocene target did not encounter gas in commercial quantities and the well has been P&A’ed. This important exploration well has helped to de-risk other Oligocene prospects and has proven the presence of a working petroleum system in the onshore Oligocene for the first time. The data is being analysed and evaluated to determine further followup potential. 

Can Leviathan Be Prevented From Swallowing Israel's Gas Market? - HAARETZ

Mar 02, 2017 12:50 AM
Avi Bar-Eli 

The field's partners pivoted to the domestic market in response to market shifts, but the government is stuck in 2015 with outdated regulations - and the public will pay the price.

A year ago, the partners in the Leviathan offshore natural gas field made major changes in the plan to develop the reservoir in the wake of the collapse of world energy prices and difficulties finding export markets.

Instead of building a floating offshore platform over the wells they are drilling, capable of handling large quantities of gas for export, they decided to make do, at least in the first stage of development, with using cheaper, more limited means to transport the gas to Israel. The floating platform will wait for the project’s second stage, when the partners hope to sign export contracts with Egypt or Turkey [or Greece/Italy].

Mapping The Eastern Mediterranean Gas Puzzle - HART ENERGY / WOOD MACKENZIE

Wednesday, March 1, 2017 - 7:00am Bas Percival, Wood Mackenzie 

This year is set to be pivotal for the Eastern Mediterranean upstream sector, with players expected to position themselves on an ever-evolving chessboard of markets, exploration activity and pricing.

In many ways, 2016 laid the groundwork for the activity Wood Mackenzie expects to see this year. Israel implemented a regulatory framework that will speed the way toward final investment decision (FID) for the Leviathan development; progress on the super giant Zohr Field continued at breakneck speed following FID in February 2016; and Cyprus launched its third licensing round, garnering interest aplenty.

Technical study for Alexandroupoli LNG unit by this summer - ENERGY PRESS

01/March/2017

Technical studies for a floating LNG terminal being planned for Alexandroupoli, northeastern Greece, are expected to be completed by this coming summer.

The prospective project was described as one of pivotal importance for Europe’s energy security and US interests, Robin Dunnigan, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Diplomacy at the US Department of State’s Bureau of Energy Resources, noted yesterday following talks with officials at Gastrade, a Copelouzos corporate group company interested in the LNG unit’s development, as well as Greece’s energy minister Giorgos Stathakis.

The official pointed out that the US’s transformation from natural gas importer to exporter has led to a revision of the country’s outlook on the southeast European region and projects such as the prospective Alexandroupoli facility.

Naftogaz seeks to conduct independent audit of Egyptian project for possible sale - INTERFAX

01.03.2017, 11:51 

National joint-stock company Naftogaz Ukrainy intends to attract an investment and banking advisor who will assess how much the company can receive from sale of its assets in Egypt, Naftogaz Commercial Director Yuriy Vitrenko has said.

"He will assess real offers and how much [buyers] are ready to give for this project. We will compare it with our expectations," he told reporters in Kyiv on Tuesday.

Cyprus deal would boost Israel’s gas plans, ambassador says - CYPRUS MAIL

March 1, 2017
Elias Hazou

A peace deal on Cyprus would speed up Israel’s plans to export its gas to Turkey, the Israeli envoy to Ankara said on Wednesday. 

“We think that the solution to the Cyprus problem can speed up the energy project,” ambassador Eitan Naeh was quoted as saying, adding it was a “win-win” for all concerned.

TEKMOR Note: A Cyprus settlement is not possible on the current negotiation basis. EU-member Cyprus will carry on with its energy plans whereas the Turkish Cypriot minority, concentrated in the formerly majority Christian, now illegally occupied-colonised north, will become even more dependant on Turkey.

LNG plant at Vassilikos still an option, president says - CYPRUS MAIL

President Anastasiades,Mediterranean Oil and Gas Forum 2017

March 1, 2017
Angelos Anastasiou

Monetising the Aphrodite gas field is a top priority for the government, which based on expected future gas finds is also looking at options, including a liquefaction terminal at Vassilikos, President Nicos Anastasiades said on Wednesday.

In his speech at the 8th Mediterranean Oil and Gas Forum in Nicosia, Anastasiades presented the government’s strategy for the development of the hydrocarbons sector, which includes improved cooperation among the region’s countries.

Leviathan agreement opponents won't admit mistake - GLOBES

1 Mar, 2017 13:50
Amiram Barkat

Noble Energy's final investment decision (FID) disproves theories that the company has no intention of developing the field.

"The interest of the Leviathan owners is not to develop the reservoir, because they want to get as much money as possible out of Tamar. There won't be anything, because there is nothing. It's nothing but PR. The state should nationalize Leviathan and bring it back to state management, and put an end to this farce, in which Noble Energy and (Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG) controlling shareholder) Yitzhak Tshuva do whatever they want with our gas" (television commentator Alon Nisser, January 19, 2017).