Aphrodite feels the love
Cypriot energy minister Georgios Lakkotrypis issues the country’s first exploitation licence to the Aphrodite consortium to export gas to Egypt
The discussion of exactly where the gas discovered back in 2011 in Cyprus' offshore Block 12, by a consortium including US independent operator Noble Energy, would end up has loomed for almost all the 2010s. At his Nicosia office, the country's energy minister tells Petroleum Economist Middle East editor Gerald Butt that the question has now finally been resolved. What is now the way ahead for Aphrodite? Lakkotrypis: The plan is that we will transport the gas vis a subsea pipeline to Egypt, liquefying it at Idku, from where it will be shipped by Shell [another partner, along with Israel's Delek, in Aphrodite] to international markets, primarily Europe. We have spent the past 12 months or mor
Also in this section
4 December 2025
Time is running out for Lukoil and Rosneft to divest international assets that will be mostly rendered useless to them when the US sanctions deadline arrives in mid-December
3 December 2025
Aramco’s pursuit of $30b in US gas partnerships marks a strategic pivot. The US gains capital and certainty; Saudi Arabia gains access, flexibility and a new export future
2 December 2025
The interplay between OPEC+, China and the US will define oil markets throughout 2026
1 December 2025
The North African producer’s first bidding round in almost two decades is an important milestone but the recent extension suggests a degree of trepidation
