The Ministry of Energy and Water of Lebanon has relaunched its first oil and gas licensing round, opening five offshore blocks (blocks 1, 4, 8, 9 and 10).
Three of the five blocks included in the licensing round are located near Israeli maritime borders, where large gas fields have been discovered since 2009. Lebanon, which is estimated to hold at least 95 tcf (nearly 2,700 bcm) of gas and 750 mbl of oil in its territorial waters, is seeking to develop a domestic oil and gas industry. However political troubles have delayed the licensing process for three years.
In 2013, 43 companies - including Chevron, ExxonMobil and Total - qualified to take part in an oil and gas tender, which was delayed several times after the cabinet failed to pass decrees. These companies will remain qualified to bid in the oil and gas licensing round and a second pre-qualification round will run between 2 February and 31 March 2017 to attract further investors. The qualifying companies will be announced on 13 April 2017.
Pre-qualified companies will have to submit their bids to the Lebanese Petroleum Administration by 15 September 2017 and approval is expected in late October 2017.