Jordan Likely to Finalise Israel Gas Deal Next Month

Jordan will most likely finalise a deal with Noble Energy next month for supply of natural gas from Israel's Leviathan field, news agency Reuters reported Friday.

"We are working on the long-term supply deal (with Noble Energy) but we have not yet decided the amounts and prices. We are aiming by mid-November to reach an agreement," energy minister Mohammad Hamed said in an interview.

Last month, Noble Energy  executed a non-binding Letter of Intent (LOI) with National Electric Power Company Ltd. (NEPCO) of Jordan. 

Delivery of natural gas is expected to occur at a border location between Israel and Jordan, following the completion of related pipeline infrastructure, Noble Energy said in a statement last month.

Jordan has been facing rising energy bills due to stoppage of gas supplies from Egypt, Reuters said. The country has been forced to use more expensive heavy fuel and diesel for power generation.

Egypt gas supplies have stopped completed since May, having been falling sharply since sabotage attacks on the network in Egypt's Sinai region since 2011 and bottlenecks in the country's own domestic market, the news agency added.

Noble Energy operates Leviathan with a 39.66 percent working interest.  Other interest owners are Delek Drilling with 22.67 percent, Avner Oil Exploration with 22.67 percent, and Ratio Oil Exploration (1992) Limited Partnership with the remaining 15 percent. 

The Leviathan field has an estimated 22 Tcf of discovered natural gas resources.