Australia's second largest gas producer, Woodside Petroleum, has purchased a 30% stake in Israel's Leviathan gas well, and will make an
initial investment of nearly $700 million.
Woodside will acquire a 30 percent interest in the Leviathan field,
estimated to contain 17 trillion cubic feet of gas, from partners Noble
Energy Mediterranean Ltd., Delek Drilling, Avner Oil Exploration and
Ratio Oil Exploration, the Perth-based company said Monday in a
statement.
“Being selected as the Leviathan joint venture’s preferred partner in
a competitive bidding process demonstrates the value of our LNG
development capabilities,” Chief Executive Officer Peter Coleman said in
the statement. Woodside will be the operator of any liquefied natural
gas development of the field. “Acquiring an interest in these permits is
an exciting opportunity to grow our portfolio in the emerging Eastern
Mediterranean basin and we look forward to finalizing the agreement.”
In
addition to the $696 million initial payment, Woodside has agreed to
pay $200 million once laws permitting Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) export
from Israel are in force, and $350 million on a final investment
decision in relation to an LNG development.
"This is a company
with an excellent reputation that will position Israel as an important
player in the global LNG market," said Igal Landau CEO of Ratio Oil
Exploration. "It is impossible to minimize the important impact of this
process on Israel's energy sector and the economy in general."
Speaking
during a conference call Monday, Woodside's Coleman declined to put a
time frame on construction of an LNG plant, but said design work on the
project had already begun, according to the Financial Review. “We want
to pursue it as quickly as we can,” he said.
With all the talk about boycotts, they just keep on buying....
There's an important point, and hopefully, strategic goal. Make Israel an important source of reliable energy to the world market, specifically Europe.
ReplyDeleteNot only will this be a vast earner of profits and expansion of the Israeli tax base, it'll be a huge imports/exports balance of payments positive. Not to mention making Israel energy independent. This is a huge win all around and the faster Israeli companies move on this, the better.
Europe will hugely benefit by greatly decreasing reliance on Russian energy. The world as a whole will also benefit by cutting the hard currency earnings of fascist troublemaker Soviet Union II under Czar Vladimir Putin.
That tired old joke about God putting Israel in the only place in the ME without oil & gas can get retired now.