Offshore Leviathan gas platform commences full operations
The Leviathan reservoir is one of the largest natural-gas fields discovered worldwide in the last decade
By EYTAN HALONThe Leviathan gas platform, 10km. offshore Israel(photo credit: ALBATROSS)
The offshore Leviathan gas platform commenced full operations on Monday, successfully extracting gas from the reservoir's two remaining wells for the first time.The procedure at the natural gas project, which commenced early Monday morning and concluded at 5 p.m., saw gas flow from the Leviathan reservoir through 120-kilometer-long pipes to the reservoir platform, 10 km. off Israel’s shore. Gas was successfully transferred from the reservoir’s first two wells to the Leviathan gas platform last week."As demonstrated during the first procedure last week, the same was demonstrated today – the impact on air quality in the coastal area facing the platform was minimal," the Ministry of Environmental Protection said in a statement.Despite opposition from environmental groups and local residents, arguing that the procedures and operation of the Leviathan platform will significantly increase air pollution along the nearby coastline, the ministry said benzene levels were similar to those monitored in previous weeks – prior to tests carried out at the platform."The actual volume of emissions from the platform, as shown by data from the ministry's inspectors, was significantly lower than quantities estimated prior to the execution of the procedure," the ministry stated. "At the end of the two procedures, in accordance with the pilot program, all the platform's emission reduction systems will operate as routine."The Leviathan reservoir, one of the largest natural-gas fields discovered worldwide in the last decade, is thought to contain up to 605 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas, equivalent to 65 years of domestic gas consumption.Lucrative export deals will also see gas exported from the Leviathan and Tamar gas fields to neighbors Jordan and Egypt. On Wednesday, Jordan's National Electricity Company (NEPCO) said it received the first supplies of gas from Leviathan platform operator Noble Energy, initiating a three-month experimental supply prior to full gas flow.NEPCO and Leviathan project partners Noble and Delek reached an agreement in September 2016 worth $10 billion to supply a gross quantity of 45 bcm of natural gas to Israel's eastern neighbor over a 15-year period. In February 2018, the companies signed a $15b. decade-long deal to supply 64 bcm of natural gas to Egypt from Leviathan and the Tamar gas field, already in operation since 2013.
