Tests Reveal Natural Gas In Sand At Isral's Leviathan Reserve
November 29 2010 - 7:25AM
Dow Jones News
Israeli partners in the offshore Leviathan gas drilling project
said Monday that tests have revealed natural gas in sands 5,100
meters below the sea.
Partners in the project, including Delek Group Ltd. (DLEKG.TV)
subsidiaries Avner Oil and Gas and Delek Drilling (DEDRL.TV), and
U.S.-based Noble Energy Inc. (NBL), have estimated that the
Leviathan reserve contains 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas,
by far the largest energy reserve found in Israel.
The companies said tests will continue and they will make an
announcement about the gas reserve in two weeks' time. The
companies began exploratory drilling in the Leviathan reserve in
October. Noble Energy and Delek are also partners in the Tamar
offshore natural gas reserve, which contains commercially-viable
natural gas. In response to both the Tamar and Leviathan
discoveries, Israeli's finance ministry has proposed raising taxes
and royalites that energy exploration companies pay the government.
Noble and Delek have publicly opposed any change to the current tax
scheme, which hasn't been updated since the 1950s.
At 1220 GMT, shares of Delek Drilling were up 0.42 shekels, or
2.98%, at ILS14.52 ($3.95), and shares of Avner Oil and Gas were up
ILS0.12, or 4.67%, at ILS2.58, in a higher Tel Aviv market.
-By Sara Toth Stub, Contributing to Dow Jones Newswires,
saratoth@gmail.com