Tamar gas field
| Tamar gas field | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Country | Israel |
| Location |
Levant basin Eastern Mediterranean Sea |
| Block | Matan licence |
| Offshore/onshore | offshore |
| Coordinates | 33°04′42″N 33°57′05″E / 33.07833°N 33.95139°ECoordinates: 33°04′42″N 33°57′05″E / 33.07833°N 33.95139°E |
| Operator | Noble Energy |
| Partners | Noble Energy (36%) Isramco Negev 2 LLP (28.75%) Delek Drilling (15.625%) Avner Oil Exploration (15.625%) Dor Gas Exploration (4%) |
| Service contractors | Aker Solutions |
| Field history | |
| Discovery | January 2009 |
| Start of production | 30 March 2013 |
| Production | |
| Current production of gas | 985×106 cu ft/d (27.9×106 m3/d) |
| Year of current production of gas | 2013 |
| Estimated gas in place | 307×109 m3 (10.8×1012 cu ft) |
| Producing formations | Tamar sands |
The Tamar gas field is a natural gas field in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Israel. The field is located in Israel's exclusive economic zone (disputed), roughly 80 kilometres (50 mi) west of Haifa in waters 1,700 metres (5,600 ft) deep. The Tamar field is considered to have proven reserves of 200 billion cubic metres (7.1 trillion cubic feet) of natural gas, while the adjoining Tamar South field has 23 billion cubic metres (810 billion cubic feet). Together, they may have an additional 84 BCM of "probable" reserves and up to 49 BCM of "possible" reserves (reserves having a 10% probability of extraction). At the time of discovery, Tamar was the largest find of gas or oil in the Levant basin of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and the largest discovery by Noble Energy. Since Tamar's discovery, large gas discoveries have been made in other analogous geological formations of the same age in the region. Because Tamar was the first such discovery, these gas containing formations have become collectively known as Tamar sands.
In 1999, Israel's Oil Commissioner granted BG Group preliminary exploratory permits to deep-sea blocks that included the Tamar field. In December 2000, BG received an exploratory license, in a partnership that included three Israeli industrial companies, Mashav (15.6%, Dor Chemicals (7.2%), and Israel Petrochemical Enterprises (7.2%). In May, 2001, Mashav left the partnership and BG brought in STX, Isramco, Clal Industries, and Granit-Sonol, the latter two leaving the partnership in 2004.
In December 2001, BG completed 3D seismic studies that indicated the potential of the Tamar field and of the adjoining Dalit field. BG recommended drilling an exploratory well at an estimated cost of $40 million.
In May 2002, the BG license was extended by the Oil Commissioner, on the condition that drilling begin no later than September 2003. In February 2003, the Commissioner extended the deadline to December 2004, and in December 2004 a further extension was given to June 2005. During this period, BG conducted negotiations for selling gas to the Israel Electric Company.
In April 2005, BG announced that it was abandoning its stake. According to some reports, BG quit after being unable to conclude an agreement to supply gas to the Israel Electric Company. (Israel in mid-2005 reached an agreement to receive gas from Egypt for $2.75/mmbtu, a price that BG stated it was not willing to match.) In May 2005, the Oil Commissioner extended the license to December 2006 and allowed the remaining partners, STX, Isramco, Dor Exploration, and Dor Chemicals to bring in the Delek-owned partnerships, Avner and Delek Drilling, on the condition that a contract for drilling be concluded by June 2006. (According to one source, Avner bought its stake from BG for one dollar).
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