MEOG: IOCs to drill Lebanese well in 2023

French super-major TotalEnergies has announced that it and Italian partner Eni are laying the groundwork for the drilling of a well in Block 9 offshore Lebanon. The news was shared by the company following a meeting between its CEO and chairman Patrick Pouyanne and Lebanese caretaker Energy Minister Walid Fayad in Paris.

According to the company’s statement, the two officials discussed the French firm’s exploration efforts in Lebanon and Pouyanne said that the teams in charge of Block 9 operations had been mobilised, adding that a bids had been sought for a drilling rig, with a unit to be chosen during Q1.

“Pre-orders have also been placed with suppliers for equipment required,” the company added, noting that environmental studies will be completed by the end of June with a view to drilling a well in Block 9 in collaboration with the Lebanese Petroleum Authority (LPA) and Eni “as soon as possible in 2023”. The target of the well is presumed to the Qana deposit, about which little is known.

TotalEnergies agreed a deal with Beirut in October regarding the development of Block 9 in parallel with agreement between Lebanon and Israel that resolved their long-running dispute around the demarcation of a shared maritime border despite technically remaining at war with each other.