The Prime Minister’s Office announced, within the framework of moves by Israel, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority to develop the Palestinian economy and maintain stability in the region, that Israel has decided to grant approval for the development of the Gaza offshore natural gas field off the coast of Gaza.
The project must be coordinated with the security services, subject to direct talks with Egypt, in coordination with the Palestinian Authority, and to complete the work of the interministerial team led by the National Security Council on safeguarding Israel’s security and diplomatic interests.
The Gaza Marine Reservoir, 36 kilometers off the coast of the Gaza Strip, was discovered in September 2000 and contains 30 billion cubic meters (BCM). Its status is not clear, and Israel never officially ceded it, but in the same year Prime Minister Ehud Barak gave Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat the right to excavate it and benefit from the proceeds. If the Palestinians want to benefit from the revenues from the reservoir now, they will need an agreement to regularize its status.
In February 2021, the matter returned to the agenda when Egypt and the Palestinians signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the development of the reservoir. Under the agreement, the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company and the Palestinian Authority will cooperate in developing the reservoir, transporting gas to the Gaza Strip, and liquefaction facilities in Egypt.
Last year it became important again, when Bennett Lapid’s government received a request to proceed with the development of the reservoir, but this past July, Minister of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Karen El Harrar decided to pass this hot potato to the next stage. Government. At the time, it was reported that Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Egypt were working on developing the reservoir through the mediation of the United States and the European Union.
Last October, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry announced that a framework agreement was already in place with all parties, including Israel, and that he expected progress to be made soon. However, the government in Israel has changed since then, and eight months have passed, and so far there is no agreement. If the move eventually goes ahead, the significance for the Palestinians is clear: potential revenue in the tens of billions of dollars and a huge boost to the Palestinian energy industry.
However, there is the question of what Israel will get in return. Israeli citizens Avira Mengistu and Hisham El-Sayed, who strayed across the border, and the remains of Israeli soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul are still being held in the Gaza Strip. A report in Asharq Al-Awsat, an international Arab newspaper based in London, said that Egypt is promoting a long-term truce between the two sides. The offshore gas reservoir in Gaza would be an important component of such a truce.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on June 18, 2023.
© Copyright Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2023.