Israel’s Natural Gas Flow To Egypt To Return To Normal Next Week

Natural gas supply from Israel to Egypt is expected to return early next week to normal levels after an Israeli gas field resumed production suspended in the wake of the Hamas attack in early October, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, quoting a source with knowledge of Egypt’s gas import levels.

Low Israeli gas supplies to Egypt also mean low or none Egyptian LNG exports to Europe, which rely on a growing number of cargoes to replace the pipeline gas supply from Russia, most of which was cut off last year after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.  

In Israel, gas production from the offshore Tamar field has resumed, a month after it was suspended in the wake of the Hamas attacks on southern Israel. The Tamar field is one of the two massive offshore gas fields that put Israel on the global gas map when they were discovered. The field last year produced 10.25 billion cubic meters, up by 18% in 2021. It is operated by Chevron, which also operates the other major gas field in the country, Leviathan.

After the resumption of gas production at Tamar, gas flows from Israel to Egypt are set to nearly double and return to the pre-war levels by early next week, according to Bloomberg’s source.

Egypt’s gas imports from Israel are set to return to the pre-war level of 800 million cubic feet a day early next week, compared to only 250 million cubic feet per day in early November, the anonymous source told Bloomberg.

Export flows of gas from southern Israel to Egypt through the offshore EMG pipeline are also likely to restart this week, sources told Bloomberg on Monday. Supplies from Israel to Egypt via EMG were suspended following the shutdown of the Tamar field, although some of those exports were re-routed through Jordan.   

Higher Egyptian gas imports and eased concerns about production disruption in the Eastern Mediterranean are good news for Europe, which could hope for some LNG from Egypt this winter, barring an escalation and other field shut-ins.  

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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