It's very early days, but the big gas exploration effort Tamar-1, off Israel's coast at Haifa, has certainly got off to a good start. Avner and Delek Drilling, of Yitzhak Tshuva's Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG), reported yesterday evening that initial analysis of the results of the drilling indicated that the layer of sands in the sea bed at the drilling site contained natural gas.
The drilling operator, Noble Energy of the US, informed the partners that the drilling had reached the target stratum at a depth of 4,900 meters. In the next few days, the partnership will start to examine the electrical logs to gather data on the size of the potential reserve, and after that will decide whether it is worthwhile carrying out production tests.
The Tamar-1 drilling, some 90 kilometers west of Haifa, is considered the most promising of the potential drilling sites off Israel's coast. Initial estimates were of a 35% chance of finding a reserve of 87 billion cubic meters of natural gas. The drilling is the most expensive ever undertaken in Israel, at an investment estimated at $144 million.
The partners in the exploration are Noble Energy (36%), Isramco (28.75%), Delek Drilling and Avner Oil and Gas Exploration of the Delek Group (31.25%), and Dor Gas Exploration of the Dor-Alon Group (4%). Benny Steinmetz's STX withdrew from the partnership. Because of the deep water location of the drilling (1,700 meters) and the distance from the shore, production costs, if commercial quantities of gas are found, are estimated at over $1 billion.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on January 12, 2009
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