Following a series of discussions that began after Israel's High Court of Justice struck down the natural gas agreement between Leviathan gas reservoir owners Noble Energy and Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG) and the government, the companies' representatives have consented in a meeting with Minister of National Infrastructure, Energy, and Water Resources Yuval Steinitz to a new partial regulatory stability clause that does not include a government commitment to automatically oppose Knesset legislation on the subject.
The new version of the clause allows future governments room for exercising judgment concerning changes in natural gas policy, should these become necessary. The proposal will be brought up for cabinet approval in the coming days.
Steinitz said, "After hard work, we managed to devise a suitable substitute for the stability clause in line with the principles laid out by the Supreme Court. The compromise is aimed at creating a regulatory environment that encourages investments. I very much hope that development of the Leviathan reservoir, which began last January, will now continue on the original timetable established in the gas plan, and that Israel's economic waters can be opened this year for oil and gas exploration by other international energy companies."
Noble Energy said, "Representatives of Noble Energy engaged in discussions with the Israeli government in the government's efforts to formulate stability language which enables us to continue to progress the Leviathan project on timelines previously indicated. In these discussions, Noble did not waive any of its legal rights. This is an important milestone in creating a stable investment environment and we remain committed to working with the Israeli government to achieve our mutual goal of delivering gas from leviathan as quickly as possible."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 18, 2016
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