Israel wants to “increase” its gas exports to Italy, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assured Friday in Rome, citing the option of creating a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Cyprus.
“We already cooperate with your national company (Eni, editor’s note) on gas, but we want to develop” this cooperation, Netanyahu said, addressing Business Minister Adolfo Urso during a forum with leaders of Italian companies.
“I believe that we should look carefully and quickly at the possibility of adding an LNG terminal, perhaps in Cyprus, to increase gas export capacities from Israel to Italy, and from Italy to Italy. ‘Europe,” he explained.
Like other European countries, Italy has stepped up initiatives to end its dependence on Russian gas since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Israel entered the circle of gas producing and exporting countries following the discovery in the early 2010s of several gas reservoirs off its coast in the Mediterranean. But a major problem arises for the Jewish state, the absence of a gas pipeline to connect its drilling platforms in the Mediterranean to the markets of southern Europe.
When it comes to gas, “I believe there is a strategic need in Italy and Europe, and Israel is ready to do more with you in this regard,” Netanyahu stressed.
These statements were welcomed by his Italian interlocutor, Adolfo Urso: “we must win the challenge of energy autonomy and we can do it better together, especially since Italy aims to become the European gas hub and Israel must be the strong point for the production of gas”.
Other options for transporting Israeli gas to Europe include the EastMed project, the construction of a largely underwater gas pipeline of nearly 1,900 km, connecting Israel’s offshore gas fields with southern Europe via by Cyprus and Greece. Via the Poseidon gas pipeline, the gas would then be transported to Otranto, in southern Italy.
But this project, costing six billion euros, is expensive, and should be completed and commissioned only between 2025 and 2027. The EastMed gas pipeline is developed by IGI Poseidon, a joint venture owned by the Italian group Edison, a subsidiary of the French electrician EDF, and the Greek gas company Depa.
Israel wants to “increase” its gas exports to Italy, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assured Friday in Rome, citing the option of creating a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Cyprus.
“We are already cooperating with your national company (Eni, editor’s note) in terms of gas, but we want…
