Nicosia, Cairo sign deal for gas pipeline

Cyprus and Egypt have signed an agreement for the construction of an underwater pipeline to export natural gas to Egypt, a statement said on Wednesday.

It said the deal was signed by Minister of Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism Yiorgos Lakkotrypis and Egypt’s Oil Minister Tarek El-Molla.

The terms of the commercial agreement for the construction of the pipe will be discussed between the companies involved in the project, a Noble Energy consortium and the operators of a liquefaction plant at Idku, Egypt.

Lakkotrypis said the agreement was aimed at ensuring the timely and safe development, construction and operation of an underwater pipeline directly to Egypt through the two countries’ exclusive economic zones.

A joint committee will be set up in the next 30 days to oversee the project.

The pipeline is intended to convey natural gas from Cyprus’s Aphrodite natural gas field to a liquefaction plant at Idku, a town in Egypt’s Beheira Governorate.

Source: ekathimerini.com