Agreements on getting Cyprus pure gasoline to market through Egypt hailed as vitality cooperation milestone
NICOSIA, Cyprus — A pair of agreements outlining how sizeable pure gasoline deposits inside Cypriot waters will get to market through processing amenities in Egypt are a milestone for vitality cooperation, Cyprus’ president stated Monday.
President Nikos Christodoulides stated the cooperation between Cyprus and Egypt helps to outline the regional vitality map, calling the agreements “game-changers” which can be “pivotal for our strategic partnership.”
The primary settlement between Egypt, Cyprus and a consortium made up of vitality firms Complete of France and Italy’s Eni foresees piping pure gasoline from a deposit referred to as Cronos to Egyptian amenities the place it is going to be liquefied and processed for export to markets together with Europe.
The Eni-Complete consortium, which holds exploratory licenses for 4 of the 13 areas or blocks inside Cyprus’ offshore financial zone, will make a remaining choice on the way it will extract and convey the gasoline earlier than the summer time this yr.
Eni Chief Govt Officer Claudio Descalzi referred to as the settlement a decisive step towards creating an vitality hub within the jap Mediterranean.
Officers have not disclosed how giant the Cronos deposit is, but it surely’s believed to carry greater than the Aphrodite deposit — the primary gasoline subject found inside Cyprus’ unique financial zone in 2011 — that is estimated to comprise 4.5 trillion cubic toes of gasoline.
The second settlement between Egypt Cyprus and a consortium composed of Chevron, NewMed Vitality and Shell units out the framework beneath which the Aphrodite deposit might be developed and monetized.
The Aphrodite deal comes three days after the Cypriot authorities and the Chevron-led consortium accredited a revised improvement and manufacturing plan for the deposit that features a floating platform that processes extracted pure gasoline in addition to a pipeline hyperlink to Egypt.
Cypriot Vitality Minister George Papanastasiou stated final month the choices of whether or not to make use of Aphrodite gasoline for Egypt’s home vitality wants or to course of it for export are nonetheless being weighed.
Christodoulides additionally held talks along with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi on the 2 nations’ subsequent vitality cooperation objectives in addition to regional developments.
Christodoulides additionally met on the sidelines of Egypt’s vitality exhibition EGYPES 2025 with ExxonMobil’s Vice President for World Exploration John Ardill.
ExxonMobil and companions Qatar Petroleum, which maintain exploration licenses for 2 Cypriot blocks, are at the moment drilling a brand new nicely close to the present Glaucus deposit which is estimated to comprise 5 to eight trillion cubic toes of gasoline.
Papanastasiou has stated there are “optimistic” indications of pure gasoline portions on the new Elektra nicely, additionally in Cypriot waters, with preliminary outcomes anticipated in early April.
