Lebanon relaunched its first oil and gas licensing round after a three-year delay, the energy minister said on Jan. 26, kick-starting the development of a hydrocarbon industry stalled by national political issues.
Lebanon has opened five offshore blocks--blocks 1,4,8,9 and 10--for bidding in a first licensing round, Minister of Energy and Water Cesar Abou Khalil told a news conference.
In 2013, 46 companies qualified to take part in bidding for oil and gas tenders, 12 of them as operators, including Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) , Total and ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM).
But political issues, which left Lebanon without a president for more than two years, meant the licensing process was put on hold.
Abou Khalil said a second pre-qualification round for companies interested in E&P contracts would be launched soon.
Lebanon, along with Cyprus, Israel and Egypt, sits on the eastern Mediterranean gas field discovered in 2009.
Recommended Reading
E&P Highlights: Jan. 12, 2024
2024-01-15 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, including an SLB-Nabors collaboration and new contract awards.
Tech Trends: Halliburton’s Carbon Capturing Cement Solution
2024-02-20 - Halliburton’s new CorrosaLock cement solution provides chemical resistance to CO2 and minimizes the impact of cyclic loading on the cement barrier.
E&P Highlights: Jan. 22, 2024
2024-01-22 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, including FIDs for the Victory and Winterfell fields and new technology updates.
Tech Trends: SLB's Autonomous Tech Used for Drilling Operations
2024-02-06 - SLB says autonomous drilling operations increased ROP at a deepwater field offshore Brazil by 60% over the course of a five-well program.
Comstock Continues Wildcatting, Drops Two Legacy Haynesville Rigs
2024-02-15 - The operator is dropping two of five rigs in its legacy East Texas and northwestern Louisiana play and continuing two north of Houston.