President Nikos Christodoulides met with a delegation from Chevron on Wednesday at the Presidential Palace, led by Javier La Rosa, the US energy giant’s President of the Base Assets and Emerging Countries portfolio.
During the meeting, the president said that internal procedures related to the agreement on Cypriot natural gas are nearing completion. It is believed Christodoulides was referring here to cabinet approval of the term sheet for a gas sales and purchase agreement on Aphrodite.
According to the Presidential Palace, the president underlined that, in light of international and regional developments, the need to accelerate implementation of the Republic of Cyprus’ energy planning has become even more pressing.
Christodoulides stressed that advancing Cyprus’ energy plans is of particular importance both for the wider region and for the European Union, at a time when energy security, diversification of sources and Europe’s energy autonomy feature prominently on the European agenda.
He noted that the issue was also discussed during proceedings of the informal European Council held in Cyprus last week, highlighting the geostrategic importance of the Eastern Mediterranean for the EU’s energy security and future outlook.
The president added that internal procedures are expected to be completed in the coming weeks, with decisions by the Council of Ministers forming part of the agreed action timetable.
Christodoulides also said the issue was discussed with the President of Egypt on the sidelines of the informal EU summit. He argued that this confirms the importance of regional cooperation in advancing specific energy projects and linking the region’s energy prospects with Europe’s needs.
A long time coming
Chevron is the main concession holder for the Aphrodite gas field, the first gas discovered in block 12 of Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone, back in 2011.
Currently, the Aphrodite partners are undertaking a front end engineering and design (FEED) study which was contracted to Australian firm Worley. This is expected to wrap up by the end of the year while a final investment decision on the much-delayed exploitation of Aphrodite is expected at some point during the first half of 2027.
Chevron and partners to the block 12 concession have signed a term sheet for a gas sales and purchase agreement with Egyptian state firm EGAS for all Aphrodite volumes to be supplied to the local market there. However, this is a non-binding agreement for now and depends on the partners taking a final investment decision. To date, no energy company involved in Cyprus’ EEZ has taken an FID on any gas discovery.
According to MEES' East Med energy expert Peter Stevenson, a gas price has been agreed with the price linked to Brent crude, which is a positive step on the road to exploitation.
Meanwhile, an agreement on the Israeli side of the maritime border at Aphrodite, covering the Ishai concession, also appears to be close which would alleviate one of the pending concerns of the project, he said. That will likely be a one-off compensation payment to the Israeli firms holding the Ishai licence.
As for when Cyprus’ first discovery will make it to market, the Aphrodite partners plan for 2031, all things being equal.