Israel wants to help the European Union with the supply of natural gas as EU countries aim to completely stop the import of Russian gas and oil as quickly as possible due to the Russian war in Ukraine. The EU countries have already agreed to jointly purchase new energy and accelerate the transition to sustainable, non-fossil fuels.
The EU has signed an export agreement for natural gas with Israel and Egypt. The deal has been in the works since March. According to the Israeli Ministry of Energy, this step will, for the first time, enable a "significant" export of Israeli gas to Europe.
The gas will be transported via existing pipelines to the LNG terminals in Egypt, where it can be liquefied before being transported by tankers to Europe.
Israel is actively working on increasing its production from gas fields in the Mediterranean Sea. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is in Israel to discuss the supply of Israeli natural gas to Europe. Talks are also taking place about laying a gas pipeline through the Mediterranean Sea to Greece and Cyprus. Von der Leyen will also travel to Egypt.
Other options include the proposed Eastmed pipeline, an ambitious and costly project that would connect the gas fields to the European mainland, or a shorter pipeline to Turkey.
Von der Leyen said that Moscow uses Europe’s dependence on Russian gas as a means of blackmail and has already shut off the gas supply to several European countries. Israeli gas would help Europe diversify its energy sources, along with supplies from other countries such as the United States and Qatar.
"The hope is to establish a relatively fast working process and reach a framework agreement by summer," said Lior Schillat, Director-General of the Israeli Ministry of Energy, recently during a visit to a gas field about 90 km off the coast of Israel, which will come online later this year.