LEBANON'S first offshore well has proven a failure in a blow to the country's dream of joining the East Mediterranean gas bonanza, following major discoveries in neighbouring Israel, Cyprus and Egypt-Lebanese officials said a consortium of France's Total, Italy's Eni and Russia's Novatek had failed to find commercial reserves with the Byblos-1 well on Block 4. It represents a huge disappointment as Lebanon had been touted as the next potential exploration success story in the Mediterranean Sea. Drilling began in February after long delays caused by political turmoil in the financially crippled and energy-starved Arab nation, where long power supply shortages are a daily norm. "Drilling off the Lebanese coast has shown some traces of gas but no commercially viable reserves," Energy Minister Raymond Ghajar said. "Initial drilling results showed the presence of gas at different depths in the geological layers" of Block 4, he told reporters at a news conference. He added that "no gas reservoir, no commercial reservoir was found".
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