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08.06.2015 11:34
© polandeze,flickr.com
Cyprus announced on Sunday that offshore reserves in its Aphrodite gas field have been pronounced commercially exploitable, the first such development in four years of energy exploration, EurActiv reported.
US firm Noble Energy made the first find off the southeast coast in 2011 in the Aphrodite field (Block 12), which is estimated to contain around 127.4 billion cubic metres of gas. Israeli firms Delek and Avner have a 30 percent stake in the venture.
"Noble Energy International, Delek Drilling and Avner Oil Exploration, holders of a licence for the exploration of hydrocarbons in Block 12 of Cyprus's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), have declared commerciality of Aphrodite," the energy ministry said in a statement.
It said the venture will now submit a development and production plan to the government covering method and timeline for extraction and sales. It is subject to cabinet approval.
The ministry hailed a "significant milestone to Cyprus's transition from the hydrocarbons exploration phase to that of exploitation." The announcement comes after Italian-South Korean energy consortium Eni-Kogas said in March it had failed to discover any exploitable gas reserves in deep-sea drilling off the Mediterranean island. In January, French energy giant Total said it had failed to locate any targets to test-drill in the blocks it is licensed to exploit.
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