ByCharles Kennedy– Mar 17, 2025, 9:30 AM CDT
A consortium of UK-based supermajor BP, Azerbaijan’s state oil and gas firm SOCAR, and Israeli company NewMed Energy on Monday signed a licensing agreement to explore for natural gas offshore Israel, the Energy Ministry of Israel said.
The deal marks BP’s entry into Israel and the first exploration effort outside Azerbaijan for the state company SOCAR.
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The three-way consortium was given licenses to explore for natural gas in the so-called Zone I as part of Israel’s efforts to boost its domestic gas supply and exports to foreign markets.
More licenses are expected to be awarded later this year, the Israeli energy ministry said, adding that it would announce its fifth exploration bidding round during 2025.
The BP-SOCAR-NewMed Energy joint venture bid and won the Zone I acreage in a competitive exploration licensing round back in 2023. Israel held the bid for hydrocarbon exploration over four zones (E, G, H, I) in Israel’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The bid included 20 exploration blocks under the 4th Offshore Bid Round.
SOCAR holds 33.34% of the partnership and is the operator of Zone I, while NewMed Energy and BP have 33.33% each.
“The entry of SOCAR and BP is excellent news for the State of Israel. Natural gas is a strategic asset, which strengthens our economic and political position in the world in general and in the Middle East in particular,” Israeli Energy and Infrastructure Minister Eli Cohen said.
“Israel is working to boost its natural gas production, for the benefit of the local economy as well as for export,” the minister added.
Earlier this year, Azerbaijan’s SOCAR signed an agreement with Union Energy to buy a 10% effective ownership in the Tamar field offshore Israel, one of the largest and most strategically important gas fields in the Mediterranean.
“With this step, SOCAR has begun implementing investment in upstream projects in the Mediterranean region,” the Azeri company said at the end of January.
Now the state-controlled firm and BP will explore for natural gas offshore Israel, where major fields have been discovered and put into operation in recent years, including Tamar and the giant Leviathan field operated by Chevron.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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