QatarEnergy to participate in oil and gas exploration in the Lebanon Sea
BEIRUT, 26 january (Reuters) – QatarEnergy has oil and gas in two offshore blocks off the coast of Lebanon gas TotalEnergies ( TTEF.PA ) and Eni ( ENI.MI ) will join a tripartite consortium for exploration, Lebanon’s energy ministry said. Thursday.
The statement said that the contracts will be signed on Sunday.
“This will be a very positive development,” Lebanese Energy Minister Walid Fayad told Reuters, which could push forward the start of exploration activities from November.
After months of negotiations, QatarEnergy will take a 30% stake, with France’s TotalEnergies and Italy’s Eni each holding 35%.
QatarEnergy, TotalEnergies and Eni did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In Lebanon’s first licensing round in 2017, a consortium of TotalEnergies, Eni and Russia’s Novatek won exploration bids in offshore blocks 4 and 9.
Novatek, 20It left in September 2022, leaving a % stake in the hands of the Lebanese government.
The following month, Lebanon and Israel to demarcate long-disputed maritime borders USAagreed to a remarkable agreement through the mediation of
Block 9 lies mainly in Lebanese waters, but a segment lies south of the newly demarcated border with Israel. Total and Israel have a separate agreement for any proceeds from it.
The agreement stipulated that no Lebanese or Israeli corporations operate in the zone under the new border, leading to the transfer of TotalEnergies and government shares to two companies described as TotalEnergies’ “vehicles” and the search for a new consortium partner.
Sea areas in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant have grown over the past decade gas resulted in discoveries. Russia’s intervention in Ukraine gas After cutting off the supply, interest in them increased.
Reporting by Maya Gebeily; Written by Clauda Tanios; Edited by David Goodman, Kirsten Donovan
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2023-01-26 18:03:41
Source – reuters
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