Bloomberg: Israeli Gas Future Turns Murky With Turnabout by Regulator

Executives and analysts are questioning whether Israel’s energy industry has a future now that the antitrust chief has backtracked on letting a group led by U.S.- based Noble Energy Inc. (NBL) develop the country’s two biggest natural gas fields.

Antitrust Commissioner David Gilo said this week he was reconsidering his March 14 decision to let the partnership retain its stakes in the Leviathan and Tamar reserves if it would sell smaller fields. Gilo said he was considering declaring the consortium a monopoly, a move that may require the owners, including Israel’s Delek Group Ltd., to sell one of the fields.

While Gilo’s move is designed to protect consumers from potential price collusion, critics accuse the regulator of jeopardizing investment by changing rules mid-game.

“A new and increasingly likely scenario should be considered: the premature – and tragic – death of the Israeli gas dream,” said Gal Luft, senior adviser to the Washington, D.C.-based United States Energy Security Council, in an e-mailed note. MORE