Israel mulls exporting gas through Egypt

Egyptian Minister of Petroleum, Tarek Al-Molla, yesterday discussed with his Israeli counterpart Karine Elharrar, plans to liquefy Israeli gas at Egyptian natural gas liquefaction plants for re-export.

A joint statement said the talks were held “on a phone call”, adding that the two ministers had discussed the “ongoing cooperation in the field of natural gas.”

“The two ministers discussed future plans for Israeli gas to be liquefied at Egyptian natural gas liquefaction plants for re-export,” the statement read on Facebook.

The discussion, the statement added, had come “within the framework of the East Mediterranean Gas Forum,” stressing the “importance of strengthening bilateral and multilateral cooperation among the forum’s members to unlock the full potential of natural gas in the region.”

On 9 March, Egypt, which chaired the forum, announced that member states had granted membership to France and observer status to the United States. The forum includes Egypt, Greece, Italy, Cyprus, Israel, Jordan, and Palestine.

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The establishment of the forum was announced in January 2019 and was ratified by the governments of the seven founding member states in late 2020.

Energy experts have repeatedly said that cooperation between Egypt and Israel on Mediterranean gas was primarily for Israel’s benefit, while Egypt seeks to be the region’s liquefied gas hub.

In February, Al-Molla and former Israeli energy minister, Yuval Steinitz, agreed to link the Leviathan gas field in Israel with the natural gas liquefaction units in Egypt through an offshore pipeline. Steinitz said that the move aimed to double the capacity for Israeli gas exports to Egypt.

Israel began exporting natural gas to Egypt early last year through an existing pipeline that passes under the sea before crossing the northern Sinai Peninsula by land. Egypt plans to liquefy Israeli gas in the Idku and Damietta plants, and re-export it to Europe and Asia.