Offshore staff
NICOSIA — Cyprus expects natural gas from its seas to become commercially available by 2027, its energy minister said Oct. 7, adding that Europe's energy crisis had put a renewed focus on how to expedite development of reserves in the east Mediterranean, according to a Reuters report.
The island nation, a member of the EU, reported its first find in 2011 and its most recent in August. Quantities have yet to be extracted.
"With the most recent discovery and the numbers that we have, we have about 12 to 15 Tcf of natural gas potentially available for supply to the EU," Energy Minister Natasa Pilides said. "We have initiated a discussion with the Commissioner of Energy ... on how we can expedite the process of developing and utilizing our own natural gas," she told Reuters in an interview.
Cyprus has a cluster of 13 offshore blocks rimming the south of the island, with most of them under license. Partners in its oldest discovery, in 2011 of Aphrodite, plan drilling early next year to affirm earlier estimates of about 4.5 Tcf.
Authorities expect gas from Aphrodite to be commercially available in 2027. One of the main delivery scenarios in that case is gas being piped to LNG infrastructure in Egypt.
An additional scenario in the case of other discoveries within close proximity is establishing a floating LNG facility that would liquefy the gas for transfer onto ships for export, Pilides said, whose portfolio also covers commerce and industry.
"The idea is to find synergies between companies operating in nearby plots so we can have a plan on how to construct infrastructure, which can be finished in a short period of time," Pilides said.
Recent Cyprus developments
In August, Eni and partner TotalEnergies made a potentially large gas discovery in deepwater offshore Cyprus. Cronos-1 is the second gas field proven in Block 6, following Calypso-1 in 2018, and Eni’s fourth to date offshore southwest Cyprus. The well was drilled 160 km offshore in 2,287 m water depth. Early analysis suggests about 2.5 Tcf gas in place, with significant additional upside that warrants a follow-up exploration well in the area, Eni said.
In July, Chevron and Cyprus’ Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Cyprus affirmed their joint commitment to a viable development of the deepwater Aphrodite gas discovery offshore southern Cyprus. The plan included drilling of a new well, within the overall framework of the field’s approved development and production plan.
10.07.2022
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May 17, 2023 - May 19, 2023
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