Potential gas, oil reserve identified in Oz license block
Situated off the coast of Tel Aviv, the Oz license could be a source of over 600 million barrels of oil.
By SHARON UDASINTel Aviv 370(photo credit: REUTERS/NIR ELIAS)
A potential source of hydrocarbons may be sitting just 50 km. off the coast of Tel Aviv – with about 2.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas (71 billion cubic meters) and 255 million barrels of oil, a report reveals.Conducted by international oil and gas consulting firm Netherland, Sewell & Associates, Inc. (NSAI ), the report explores the likelihood of finding gas and oils in the 400-sq.km. Oz license.While best estimates in the report indicate about 2.5 tcf of natural gas and 255 million barrels of oil, low estimates show as little as 1.1 tcf of gas and 93 million barrels of oil, while high estimates show as much as 6.5 tcf of gas and 607 million barrels of oil.“The figures in the report show that the resource is ever better than the estimates that Israel Opportunity [Energy Resources LP] made when [the company] first decided to enter the Oz license,” said Roni Halman, chairman of Israel Opportunity, one of several Oz partners. “The Levant basin is rich with gas, and we believe also in oil, which has a huge potential.”While the Oz license may hold a considerable amount of gas, the quantity still pales in comparison to the large Tamar and Leviathan reservoirs, the former is already connected to the Israeli grid and the latter is under development.Tamar and Leviathan, both located northwest of Oz, contain about 10 tcf and 19 tcf respectively.The probability of geologic success in the Oz layers that likely contain mostly gas fall between 23 percent and 27%, while the probability of geologic success for the deeper layers with oil potential fall between 16% and 18%, according to the NSAI data.Israel Opportunity-Energy Resources holds 10% of the Oz drilling license, Lapidoth-Heletz holds 41.5%, Frendum Investments has a 21.5% stake, Coleridge Gas and Oil Exploration Israel owns 12%, Placida Investments has 10% and Caspian Drilling Company holds 5%.“We hope to find additional reservoirs in the Levant basin and thereby help in promoting the energy sector in our area,” Halman said. “However, we must remember that this is a risk-intensive industry that requires professional work, along with patience.”
