Chevron has signed a deal with state-owned pipeline operator Israel Natural Gas Lines to kickstart construction of the Nitzana natural gas pipeline to transport gas from the Leviathan gasfield to Egypt, the US company said on Tuesday.
Last month, the owners of the Leviathan natural gas field off Israel signed a $35 billion export deal to supply gas to Egypt. Leviathan, owned by NewMed, Chevron and Ratio Energies, holds gas reserves of some 600 billion cubic meters.
The Nitzana pipeline route will transport around 600 million cubic feet of natural gas per day, once construction finishes in about three years, Chevron said, adding this would bring Israel's total export capacity to Egypt to more than 2.2 billion cubic feet per day.
Gas producer Energean has said it plans to send up to 2 billion cubic meters of gas a year on Nitzana from its Katlan field offshore Israel, due to start production in 2027.
The plan was announced on the same day a United Nations Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza. Israel called the assessment “scandalous” and “fake.”
