Energy Minister Walid Fayyad has relaunched the process of allocating the 8 blocks of the remaining exclusive economic maritime zone, suspended for more than a year due to the coronavirus epidemic.

Thus, oil companies wishing to participate will have to submit their respective files by June 15, 2022.

As a reminder, blocks 4 and 9 have already been allocated to a consortium led by the French company Total and in which the Italians from ENI and the Russians from Novatek are also present.

Exploratory drilling was carried out in block 4 last year.

It ended in relative failure, with the presence of traces of gas but without the presence of a reservoir like those found in other countries in the region. Additional studies of the rocks extracted from block 4 should therefore be carried out. A new drilling at block 4 would not be excluded, with a view to discovering reservoirs similar to the Tamar oil field.

As a reminder, exploratory drilling at block 9 was postponed in particular because of Israeli claims on a part of this area which nevertheless has great potential. Exploration of this block therefore depends on negotiations between the two countries, negotiations which are currently at a standstill while the economic situation has deteriorated in Lebanon.

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