Filenews 8 May 2023
The Aphrodite field could help meet gas demand, The Times of Israel reported, citing the CEO of Israel's NewMed Energy, which has rights to the field.
"In parallel with the promotion of the second phase in Leviathan, which meets the needs of the local and regional economy, we are making progress and significantly advancing the development of the Aphrodite field," said NewMed Energy CEO Yossi Abu. "Global demand for natural gas is growing, and a large block like Venus could help meet demand."
Referring to the confirmatory drilling at Aphrodite, the report quotes Israeli company NewMed Energy (formerly Delek Drilling), which holds 30% of the rights to the Aphrodite field, said the confirmatory drilling is expected to last about three months. Other partners in the Aphrodite plot, which contains about €124 billion. US giant Chevron and Shell each hold 35% of the rights.
NewMed Energy said the confirmatory drilling is being done to confirm estimates on the nature and size of the Venus gas field, currently estimated at 4.4 trillion cubic feet and marking an "important step" toward its development. "Aphrodite" is expected to operate as a productive deposit after the completion of its development.
The drilling is part of a work plan to develop the Aphrodite deposit. In September, the partners approved a budget of about $192 million to implement the drilling and to carry out the engineering pre-bunkering work needed to develop the gas field.
According to the report, the total cost of the development plan, including the cost of installing pipelines to target markets, is estimated at about $3.6 billion.
The partners seek to supply natural gas from the Aphrodite field to the domestic market of Cyprus and export gas by pipeline to other markets, including the Egyptian market and the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market. Natural gas supplies from the Aphrodite field are expected in 2027 at the earliest, according to NewMed Energy," reports the Times of Israel.
Earlier this year, partners in Israel's Leviathan field (NewMed Energy, Chevron and Ratio Oil Corp) announced plans to increase annual gas production and exports in 2025 to meet growing demand. Now, up to EUR 12 billion is coming out of Leviathan. cubic meters per year, for the supply and sale of gas to Israel, Egypt and Jordan.
Both Israel and Egypt have emerged as gas exporters in recent years as Europe is determined to wean itself off Russian imports. In June, Israel and Egypt signed a memorandum of understanding with the EU, under which Israel will export its gas to the EU for the first time. Under the deal, Israeli gas will go to the EU through Egypt's liquefaction terminals.
