The Israel-Hamas conflict has directly impacted oil and gas prices, gas operations in Israel and Egypt, and port operations in Israeli ports.
That’s what Dryad Global Analyst Noah Trowbridge told Rigzone late Tuesday, adding that oil and natural gas prices have spiked amid fears of disruptions to supply of Middle Eastern oil and gas.
“Brent crude futures, the international benchmark, has risen four percent to $88 per barrel,” Trowbridge highlighted.
“Israel has suspended operations at the offshore Tamar gas field as a security precaution and is investigating alternative fuel sources,” he added.
“This will also impact Israel’s trading partners including Egypt, whose imports of Israeli gas have already been cut by 20 percent,” Trowbridge continued.
The Dryad Global Analyst pointed out that Israel’s Leviathan offshore gas field remains operational.
“Although not directly targeted by Hamas, Israel’s commercial ports have also been impacted by the surprise offensive,” Trowbridge went on to state.
“The port of Ashkelon has been closed, whilst the ports of Ashdod and Haifa remain operational. Considering Ashdod and Ashkelon are located within rocket range of the Gaza strip, the risk of port infrastructure being indiscriminately targeted by Palestinian strikes is subsequently assessed to be substantial,” he added.
In a separate statement sent to Rigzone late Tuesday, a Chevron spokesperson confirmed that Chevron Mediterranean Limited was instructed by Israel’s Ministry of Energy to shut-in production at the Tamar Production Platform.
“We continue to supply our customers in Israel and in the region from the Leviathan Production Platform,” the spokesperson said.
“Chevron is focused on the safe and reliable supply of natural gas for the benefit of the Israeli domestic market and our regional customers. Our top priority is the safety of our personnel, the communities in which we operate, the environment and our facilities,” the spokesperson noted in the statement.
Chevron in Israel
According to Chevron’s website, the company’s projects in Israel comprise the Tamar, Leviathan, and Mari-B developments.
“The Tamar gas reservoir was discovered in January 2009 and developed within just four years – fast-tracked to meet immediate local needs after Egypt stopped supplying Israel with natural gas,” Chevron’s site states.
“Tamar ushered Israel into a new era of energy independence, supplying 70 percent of Israel’s energy consumption needs for electricity generation. The concomitant reduction in the use of coal, fuel oil, and diesel fuel resulted in improved air quality,” it adds.
Six production wells at Tamar produce volumes of natural gas ranging from 7.1 to 8.5 million cubic meters per day each, the site notes, adding that most of the natural gas processing takes place on the Tamar platform situated 24km west of Ashkelon.
The Leviathan gas reservoir was one of the world’s largest deep-water gas discoveries of 2000-2010, and its development is the largest energy project in Israeli history, Chevron’s site states.
“Some 200 engineers took part in the project’s engineering design process, while 7,000 workers from 25 different countries were employed in its construction,” the site notes.
“Thanks to the development of Leviathan, Israel can now implement a Ministry of Energy resolution to cease the use of coal as an electricity-generating fuel by 2025. This will allow all Israeli citizens to breathe cleaner and healthier air,” it adds.
“Now that Leviathan’s development has been completed, Israel has taken a great leap forward and become, for the first time in its history, an exporter of natural gas in significant quantities,” it goes on to state.
The gas field is located deep in the Mediterranean Sea, 130km west of Haifa. The estimated volume of gas in place is 33 trillion cubic feet, while the estimated volume of recoverable reserves is 22 trillion cubic feet, according to Chevron.
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