Noble Energy, a U.S.-based oil and gas company, has called the government of Israel to act quickly and enable a quick development of Noble’s offshore gas fields, the Leviathan and Tamar.
David L. Stover , Noble Energy’s Chairman, President and CEO, said: “Under the leadership of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Energy and Water Resources, a regulatory framework meeting these objectives has been overwhelmingly approved by the Israeli cabinet and yesterday was presented to the Knesset . It is imperative that the government of Israel follow through on this approved framework without further delay. Noble Energy remains fully prepared, and is well positioned, to take the actions necessary to protect the value of its assets.”
Earlier this week, Eni, the Italian oil and gas company, announced it had made what could prove to be the largest gas discovery in the Mediterranean Sea . Namely, Eni said that the discovery at the Zohr well, could hold a potential of 30 trillion cubic feet of lean gas in place. The announcement spurred reports that this could jeopardize gas sales agreements between Israel and Egypt.
However, in a statement issued on Thursday, Noble Energy’s Stover said Egypt was still interested in natural gas imports from Israel.
Stover said: “Regional demand supports the further development of our world class Tamar and Leviathan fields. Noble Energy continues its ongoing discussions with natural gas customers throughout the region, and yesterday the government of Egypt publicly reiterated its support for the import of gas from Israel for both domestic and LNG export purposes. We are confident that the quality of our Israel assets, extensive appraisal and planning efforts, and proven track record of project execution and operating performance position us well to supply natural gas to the substantially underserved regional market.”
Offshore Energy Today staff