TotalEnergies (50%) and Eni (50%, operator), partners in offshore Block 6 in Cyprus, have approved the Final Investment Decision (FID) for the development of the Cronos gas field, which was discovered in 2022 (TotalEnergies press release, 28/07/2026).
Located in deepwater approximately 185 km southwest of the Cypriot coast, the Cronos field (3 tcf or 85 bcm) will be developed through four subsea wells. According to TotalEnergies, the produced gas will be transported via a subsea pipeline from Cypriot waters to Egypt, where it will be liquefied at the Damietta LNG terminal before being exported to Europe.
Production is expected to begin in 2028, reaching a plateau of around 500 Mcf/d, equivalent to approximately 2.8 Mt/year of LNG. TotalEnergies and Eni will each market 50% of this production.
Beyond Block 6, Eni and TotalEnergies are also partners in Blocks 7, 8 and 11 in Cyprus. TotalEnergies operates Blocks 7 and 11, while Eni is the operator of Block 8, in which TotalEnergies holds a 40% interest.
In 2024, Eni and TotalEnergies announced the successful completion of the Cronos-2 appraisal well, drilled to assess the Cronos discovery in offshore Block 6. In 2025, a Host Government Agreement was signed to develop the Block 6 resources and transport and process the gas using Egypt's existing Zohr facilities.
As Cyprus remains dependent on imported conventional energy, the offshore gas discoveries made in recent years could enable the country to become a gas exporter.