Israel approves $35 bil Egypt gas export deal

The Israeli government has approved the previously-announced $35 billion agreement to expand gas exports from the country's Leviathan offshore gas field to Egypt, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said late Dec. 17, in what he described as "the largest gas deal in Israel's history."

"This deal greatly strengthens Israel's status as a regional energy power and contributes to stability in our region," he said while addressing the country. "It encourages other companies to invest in gas exploration in Israel's economic waters."

The agreement will see some 130 Bcm of gas flow to existing Leviathan offtaker Blue Ocean Energy to 2040 "or until all contract quantities are fulfilled," according to statements from NewMed Energy, one of the partners in the Leviathan field.

It will replace an existing export agreement due to end in the early 2030s.

Volumes, timeline

The deal, announced in August, had been held up amid discussions with the Israeli government.

The country's energy ministry said earlier in the year it was pushing to ensure "Israeli interests are secured and a fair price for the Israeli market is agreed upon."

Despite the delayed approval, the volumes and timeline under the agreement remain the same as those released in August, according to a source familiar with the deal who requested anonymity.

According to the August details released by NewMed, the deliveries will be two-phased.

Phase one, expected to begin in the first half of 2026, will see the sale of 20 Bcm of gas at a rate of 2 Bcm/year, it said.

The second, larger phase will see the sale of 110 Bcm, bringing total sales from Leviathan to Egypt to 12 Bcm/year.

This phase is expected to follow the completion of an expansion project to boost Israel's gas production by about 30% and bring Leviathan's production capacity to 21 Bcm/year.

NewMed did not provide an estimated start date in August for these phase two quantities to begin flowing.

It said at the time that the 130 Bcm of natural gas would be priced using a primarily Brent-indexed formula.

NewMed Energy holds a 45.34% stake in the Leviathan field, which is operated by US major Chevron (39.66%). The remaining 15% is held by Ratio Energies.

NewMed CEO Yossi Abu said that with the government decision, the company aims to approve a final investment decision for the expansion "at the earliest possible opportunity."

"This expansion will serve regional stability and strengthen bilateral relations with Egypt," he said.

A Chevron spokesperson told Platts Dec. 18, "This significant milestone, which is a key condition for investment in the expansion of Leviathan's production capacity, reflects the strong partnership between Chevron and the State of Israel and underscores our shared commitment to advancing energy security for Israel and the broader Eastern Mediterranean region, where we have a large and important position."

The Chevron spokesperson declined to comment on "matters of a commercial nature."

A 'historic' deal

Israeli Energy and Infrastructure Minister, Eli Cohen, said Dec. 17 the agreement was "historic" for Israel and stressed the government's commitment to future gas development.

"We will continue to work toward bringing in additional local and international companies to invest in Israel, in order to increase reserves for the local market and for export," he said.

The deal comes as Egypt struggles against declining domestic gas generation.

Egypt's production over the first nine months of 2025 reached just 31.8 Bcm, according to the latest data from the Joint Organizations Data Initiative. This is the second-lowest total in the JODI database for that period, behind only 2016, which saw just under 31 Bcm produced from January to September.

The slump has shifted it from a net LNG exporter to a net importer in recent years. Since the start of 2025, Egypt has imported on net some 11.2 Bcm of LNG. In 2023, it exported on net some 4.8 Bcm.

The Leviathan field started up in December 2019.

The Israeli energy ministry said in May that it produced some 11.3 Bcm of gas in 2024.

Israel's other two major offshore gas fields, Chevron-operated Tamar and Energean-operated Karish, produced 10.1 Bcm and 5.8 Bcm, respectively.

Energean is also developing a new field offshore Israel, Katlan, which it expects to produce first gas in the first half of 2027.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed the DES East Mediterranean marker at $8.992/MMBtu on Dec. 17.