Lebanon may extend licensing round for Total drilling results

Lebanon may extend licensing round for Total drilling results

Beirut: Lebanon is considering further extending the deadline for a new offshore exploration round, with some potential bidders waiting for the outcome of drilling by a group led by TotalEnergies SE. That group will drill an exploratory well at block 9 in Lebanese waters by September, with the results due by the end of the year. There could be a “natural extension” to the existing June 30 deadline for bids as those results could be a “turning point,” triggering further investment in offshore exploration, Lebanese Energy Minister Walid Fayyad said in an interview in Beirut. US and French companies are among six parties to have expressed preliminary interest in bidding. Extending the deadline would give those companies time to compile bids, the minister said. “Many of the companies are in a wait-and-see mode and would decide to bid for new blocks only after they see the results,” Fayyad said. TotalEnergies is working with Eni SpA and QatarEnergy to explore for gas in blocks 4 and 9, which include waters previously contested by Israel. The second licensing round “- for exploration rights to another eight offshore blocks “- has already been delayed several times. A discovery would help fuel power plants