Noble Energy received the green light from the Israeli government on 17 December, to move forward with the development of Leviathan and the Tamar expansion, despite a last attempt from the Israeli Forum for the Protection of the Coastline that petitioned the High Court to not approve the plan.
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Prime Minister Netanyahu signs Section 52 gas outline. From Israeli PM Flickr. |
Noble Energy said in a statement that the government of Israel acted to resolve and provide exemption from claims of the Antitrust Authority with respect to the Leviathan joint venture partners' acquisition of petroleum rights in the underlying permits.
The natural gas framework, which establishes the regulatory certainty and stability necessary to proceed with development of both Tamar and Leviathan, also provides transparency for future domestic pricing and natural gas competition in Israel. In addition, the framework permits the marketing of natural gas from Leviathan to Israeli customers for the first time.
Leviathan is one of the largest discoveries in the past decade. It is located in the Mediterranean Sea, about 130km off the coast of Israel in 1600m water depth. As Noble’s largest exploration discovery in its history, Leviathan has an estimated 22 Tcf of natural gas resources.
Noble had originally anticipated that the first phase of development at Leviathan to be approved in 2014, but had experienced several setbacks from Israel’s government.
Tamar, first discovered in 2009, went into production in 2013. At that time it was estimated to contain gross mean resources of 10 Tcf of natural gas.
To proceed with Leviathan and Tamar, Houston-based Noble has worked to advance technical work and negotiate gas sales agreements. The company is also updating and finalizing capital investment requirements, which will allow Noble to conclude external financing agreements required to reach final investment decisions (FIDs). FIDs for each project are estimated before the end of 2016, according to Noble.
"We are pleased that the government of Israel, under the leadership of the Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, has recognized the importance of natural gas development to the security and economy of Israel and the region. This enables us to move forward with development planning,” Keith Elliott, senior VP, Eastern Mediterranean said. “The high quality of the Tamar and Leviathan reservoirs, combined with Noble Energy's strong track record of major project execution, gives us confidence that these world-class assets are well positioned to meet the growing and undersupplied natural gas demand of Israeli and regional customers."
On 16 December, Leviathan partners Delek Drilling and Avner Oil received a copy of a petition to the High Court, including the request for an order of decree and the grant of an interim injunction that was filed by the against Israeli Forum for the Protection of the Coastline against Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the government of Israel, the Ministry of National Infrastructures, the Ministry for the Protection of the Environment, the Ministry of Health, the National Council for Planning and Construction, and against the Leviathan partners, Noble, Delek, and Avner.
“The Partnerships intend to study this petition to the High Court with the assistance of their legal counsel, to assess its significance and accordingly to formulate their further steps in the matter,” the Delek Group said in a statement.
Earlier this week, the Delek Group confirmed the development for the Leviathan Field, which is intended to produce and handle a maximum daily output of natural gas of approximately 1.6-1.8 Bcf (maximum of 16 - 18 Bcm per annum) using various engineering alternatives. This is in order to supply gas from the Leviathan Field to customers in the Israeli market, to NEPCO in Jordan, customers in Egypt (mainly BG) and to the Palestinian Authority, in accordance with the letters of intent signed to date, the company said.
Noble operates Leviathan with 39.66% interest. Partners include Delek Drilling (22.67%), Avner (22.67%), and Ratio Oil Exploration (15%).
Noble operates Tamar with 36%. Its partners include Isramco Negev 2 LP (28.75%), Delek Drilling (15.625%), Avner (15.625%) and Dor Gas Exploration (4%).
Read more:
Israel puts Leviathan on fast-track
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