Cyprus signed a deal on Aug. 31 for the transfer of natural gas via pipeline to Egypt, once extraction starts from discoveries made offshore of the Mediterranean island.

U.S. energy firm Noble Energy Inc. (NYSE: NBL) found an estimated 4.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in one prospect off Cyprus in late 2011.

A consortium of Italy's Eni and South Korea's KoGas have a contract with Cyprus for exploration over three offshore blocks. French oil major Total has exploration rights over one block.

Aug. 31's accord was signed in Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus, by Egyptian petroleum minister Tarek El Molla and Yiorgios Lakkotrypis, energy minister of Cyprus.

Cyprus received expressions of interest from Eni, Total, Statoil ASA (NYSE: STO), ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), Qatar Petroleum, and Cairn for another three offshore hydrocarbon blocks in a licensing round in late July.