GasMiddle EastOffshore

Israeli parliament approves gas field development plans

Israel’s parliament yesterday approved plans to develop three offshore natural gas fields. In a tight vote, parliament gave its blessing to get the large Leviathan gas field and two smaller ones to be developed by a consortium led by Noble Energy and Israel’s Delek Group. However, further regulatory hurdles lie in wait before development can get underway.

At 22trn cu ft, Leviathan was initially planned to begin production in 2018 with most of the gas earmarked for exports, but that date now looks optimistic.

Noble in a statement urged Israel’s government to implement the deal as quickly as possible. “After final approval we can complete the required export contracts, rebuild the work teams … and raise the external financing needed,” it said.

Sam Chambers

Starting out with the Informa Group in 2000 in Hong Kong, Sam Chambers became editor of Maritime Asia magazine as well as East Asia Editor for the world’s oldest newspaper, Lloyd’s List. In 2005 he pursued a freelance career and wrote for a variety of titles including taking on the role of Asia Editor at Seatrade magazine and China correspondent for Supply Chain Asia. His work has also appeared in The Economist, The New York Times, The Sunday Times and The International Herald Tribune.
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