A new chapter in relations between the European Union (EU), Egypt and Israel has been opened, but this time through the strategic axis of gas.
A tripartite agreement on gas has been signed Wednesday between Egypt, the EU and Israel, according to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The European official tweeted Tuesday following her meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in Israel, "Three-way strategic gas agreement."
She said, "I am grateful that Israel will increase its energy supply to the European Union. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we will take an important step by signing a tripartite agreement on gas between Israel, the European Union and Egypt."
"We will join forces to help protect the world from a major food crisis," she added.
"Let's work together to meet the challenges we face in the region and around the world," she said.
Israel intends to export gas to Europe via Egypt, with an agreement between the parties.
According to a draft document dated June 7, 2022, seen by Reuters, the European Commission proposed to EU countries a deal with Egypt and Israel to increase natural gas imports from the eastern Mediterranean.
The draft memorandum of understanding is part of the European Union's efforts to reduce imports of fossil fuels from Russia after the war in Ukraine.
The document, which is located in 9 pages, stated, "The natural gas that will be supplied to the European Union will come either from the Arab Republic of Egypt, Israel, or from any other source in the eastern Mediterranean region, including the member states of the European Union in the region."
The European Union has publicly stated that it intends to conclude a tripartite agreement with Egypt and Israel before the summer, but the details of the document, dated June 7, are not made public.
The draft agreement lays down principles for enhancing cooperation between the three parties, but does not specify the amount of gas the union intends to import or any timetable for supplies.
The draft indicates that the agreement will include the use of liquefied natural gas infrastructure in Egypt, clarifying the state's planning to become a regional natural gas hub.
The memorandum of understanding continues for 9 years since the date of signing according to the document, but this part comes written inside parentheses, indicating that it is more subject to change than others.
Egypt already exports small quantities of gas to the European Union. However, Cairo and Israel are expected to increase production and export in the coming years.
Egypt exported 8.9 billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas last year and 4.7 billion cubic meters in the first five months of 2022, according to Refinitiv Eikon data, although most of it goes to Asia.
Gas sector officials say that Israel is on its way during the next few years to double its gas production to about 40 billion cubic meters by expanding projects and starting production from new fields.
Israel expressed its hope to reach an agreement to supply gas to Europe and is also considering building a pipeline to export more gas to Egypt.
The European Union imported 155 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia last year, which represents about 40% of its total consumption.
Under the memorandum of understanding, Egypt will be able to buy some gas transported to the European Union or other countries through the Egyptian infrastructure, according to the document, which also said that Egypt can use this gas locally or export it.
In the first four months of 2022, gas export revenues in Egypt reached $3.9 billion, according to Reuters. That’s as much as the country earned from gas in all of 2021—and 768% higher than its gas revenue in all of 2020.
https://see.news/report-europes-gas-crisis-may-be-egypts-huge-windfall/
Follow the latest news on Google News
