Israel's Leviathan Signs $35 Billion Natural Gas Supply Deal with Egypt

Alsharq Tribune- Mohamed Otaify 

Israel's Leviathan natural gas field has signed the largest export agreement in the country's history, worth up to $35 billion to supply gas to Egypt, NewMed, one of the partners in the field, said on Thursday.

Leviathan, off Israel's Mediterranean coast with reserves of some 600 billion cubic meters, will sell about 130 bcm of gas to Egypt through 2040, or until all of the contract quantities are fulfilled, Reuters said.

The Leviathan reservoir began supplying Egypt shortly after production began in 2020. It signed an initial deal in 2019 for 60 bcm - or 4.5 bcm a year - that is expected to be fully supplied by the early 2030s.

Leviathan, the largest natural gas field in the Mediterranean, has already supplied 23.5 bcm of gas to Egypt since 2020, NewMed said.

"This is the most strategically important export deal to ever occur in the eastern Mediterranean, and strengthens Egypt’s position as the most significant hub in the region," NewMed CEO Yossi Abu said.

"This deal, made possible by our strong regional partnerships, will unlock further regional export opportunities, once again proving that natural gas and the wider energy industry can be an anchor for collaboration."

 Egypt, the most populous Arab country, has endured rolling blackouts over the last two years as government finances are under strain and natural gas supply fell short of demand.

It abandoned plans to become a hub supplying Europe and instead became a net importer of gas, signing over recent months agreements with energy firms and trading houses to buy 150-to-160 cargoes of liquefied natural gas

During a 12-day war between Israel and Iran in June, exports from Leviathan were halted for security reasons.

Under Thursday's deal, Leviathan in a first stage will supply Egypt with 20 bcm of gas starting in early 2026 after the connection of additional pipelines.

It will export the remaining 110 bcm in a second phase that will begin after completion of the Leviathan expansion project and the construction of a new transmission pipeline from Israel to Egypt via Nitzana in Israel, NewMed said.

Leviathan's expansion, it said, should allow for production and supplies within Israel and to its neighbors through 2064.