Disputed Karish gas field will start production 'within weeks': Energean

Energean, a Greek energy conglomerate, said on Thursday that production of the disputed Karish gas field claimed by both Lebanon and Israel is expected to start "within weeks."

The Karish gas field is within a zone disputed between the two countries and is currently the subject of negotiations between the two countries.

Hezbollah warned back in June that any move by Israel to exploit the gas field without settling the maritime demarcation issue could provoke a forceful response by the pro-Iran militia.

The energy giant said in an interim London Stock Exchange Report that it is on track to deliver the first gas from Karish within weeks. It added that Karish North was successfully "drilled and completed in early August 2022."

Production of the Karish gas field had been delayed once before, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Energean expects Karish to be producing up to 25,000 barrels of oil per day by the end of 2022, according to the filing. The company is expected to repay some US$625 million of a loan facility by the first quarter of 2024.

Media reports have indicated that a maritime deal between Lebanon and Israel could be reached by the end of September. US Energy Envoy and mediator Amos Hoschstein is set to arrive in Beirut by the end of the week to discuss the terms of a potential deal.

Though the terms of the deal have yet to be formally disclosed, it is believed that a "resource swap" is on the table, with Israel receiving the Karish gas field and Lebanon Qana.

The two countries have been in on and off again negotiations on the maritime issue for over a decade. Negotiations are complicated by the fact that the two countries are technically in a state of war and do not have diplomatic relations.

In 2013, a deal was tentatively agreed upon by the Israelis and Lebanese but was scuttled by the Lebanese at the last minute. Lebanon has since upped its demands in the maritime negotiations.