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Italy’s Eni could resume LNG exports from its liquefaction terminal in Egypt next month despite uncertainty over the availability of gas flows between Israel and Egypt.
Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi told reporters on the sidelines of the FT Energy Transition Summit in London that he expects Egypt to begin shipping cargoes in November, but cautioned that the decision was up to Egypt’s state-controlled Egas.
Shipments from Egypt’s two LNG export facilities, the Eni-operated Damietta terminal and the Shell-operated Idku terminal, were halted in June as soaring cooling demand consumed gas that had been available for export earlier in the year.
This summer, Egyptian Energy Minister Tarek el Molla predicted that exports would resume in October, but just two cargoes loaded from Egyptian terminals so far last month.
Descalzi estimated that Egyptian domestic demand could fall by 1.5 billion to 1.6 billion cubic feet per day as temperatures cooled in the winter, opening up volumes for export even if Egypt does not receive its customary 800 million cubic feet per day from Israel.
The status of gas flows between Israel and Egypt is not entirely clear. Egypt’s energy ministry said all flows had stopped following the shut-in of the Tamar field offshore Israel following intensification of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
However, Israeli sources told Energy Intelligence that gas continued to flow through Jordan into Egypt, albeit potentially at reduced volumes.
Eni supplies the Damietta terminal from Egyptian offshore gas assets, including the flagship Zohr field.
Descalzi brushed off concerns that production from Zohr could be declining more rapidly than expected, saying it was performing as predicted under the company’s reservoir models.
Eni paused activity at Zohr for a period during the Covid-19 pandemic but has resumed drilling and plans to bring on an additional well there in the coming months. “Zohr is doing very well,” he said.
Earlier this week, Eni picked up six exploration permits in Israel’s latest offshore bid round as part of a consortium with Israel’s Ratio Energies and Dana Petroleum, a subsidiary of Korea National Oil Corp.
Descalzi did not detail the work commitments associated with the awards other than to say that Eni could begin reviewing the geology of the blocks using existing data. “Clearly now the priority is not exploration in Israel. There is a tragedy. So I think that is not now the moment to talk to them about exploration.”
