Galery

1

Greece, Cyprus and Israel are expected to sign a Memorandum of Cooperation in the field of electricity and natural gas at the end of the month. According to the Greek Minister of Environment and Energy, George Papaconstantinou, it will be related to the possibilities for connecting electricity networks of the three countries and prospects for cooperation in relation with the transmission of gas through Greece to Europe from the deposits that were discovered or are yet to be discovered near the eastern Mediterranean.

George Papaconstantinou said that at the last meeting of Energy Ministers of member states of the European Union the possibility was discussed of creating a third pole to supply natural gas, apart from Russia and the Caspian Sea.

At the same time, the preparation for the start of drilling to find hydrocarbons - oil and gas in the Aegean and Ionian Sea and for the discovery of new energy sources in mainland Greece continues. The Ministry of Environment and Energy expects proposals for the conduction of research in the areas of the Gulf of Patras, Ioannina and Katakolo by the end of June. In early July, bidding will begin for concession contracts to conduct drilling in 10-12 mainland areas in the country.

In April the names of companies that will conduct seismic surveys in the Ionian Sea and the area south of Crete will be announced, which will be followed by a new round of concession contracts for about 15 marine sites.

According to Deputy Energy Minister Yiannis Maniatis, as early as this October it will become clear what are the deposits of natural resources available to Greece. The goal of the government is for a drilling site to be installed at the end of this year or early next year in one of the areas that are part of the international competitions.

Eight of the world's largest drilling companies from the USA, Norway, France, England and Germany have expressed their desire to conduct earthquake drills in the Ionian Sea and Crete. Sources from the Ministry of Energy said that the interest on their part is a significant success for Greece and for the investment climate in the country. The costs for the tests will be covered by the companies which will be selected from a committee within the ministry. They will then sell the data collected to oil companies which will decide whether they are interested in starting drilling in the specific areas.

According to Yiannis Maniatis the amount that Greece will receive from the sale of the research results is not yet clear. These results will be analysed by the companies within 4-6 months and in early 2013 concession contracts will be issued for the sites in the Ionian Sea and Crete.

He further said that for the regions of Patras, Ioannina and Katakolo at least two very large oil companies have expressed their interest. The tender, which will begin in early July will include the areas of Kavala, Serres, Epanomi in Thessaloniki, Grevena, Kalamata, Evros, Etoloakarnaniya, Achaia and the eastern part of the island of Crete.

The management of the government service for natural sources of energy is expected to be appointed as early as March. Then the overall map of the deposits in Greece will be presented in order to serve as a magnet for attracting investments.

So far it is unclear whether they will begin research in the Aegean region, due to the fact that Greece has not specified its exclusive economic zone in this region. Minister George Papaconstantinou said that "the research on the utilization of energy sources will take place wherever Greece has sovereign rights."

According to Yiannis Maniatis, however, the right of discovery and utilization of such deposits in the Greek shelf does not depend on the determination of the exclusive economic zone. He believes that it overlaps with the shelf up to the border of 200 nautical miles, and that under the international law the specification of such zone is not required for the conduct of drilling.