BP and ADNOC have halted discussions related to the $2 billion acquisition of a major stake in Israel’s NewMed Energy originally announced in March 2023. According to NewMed, the partners along with the committee established to assess the proposed deal have agreed to suspend discussions due to the “uncertainty created by the external environment.”
“The consortium reiterated its interest in the proposed transaction,” said NewMed in a statement. “The process will remain suspended until such time as discussions resume or the process is terminated. There can be no certainty that discussions will resume or that an agreement will be reached in the future, nor as to the terms of an agreement should one be reached. The partnership will update unitholders of further developments as appropriate.”
NewMed parent Delek Group is the largest shareholder in the Chevron-led Leviathan gas field offshore Israel, holding a 45.34% stake in the estimated 23 Tcf field — one of the largest gas-producing assets in the region. If the deal were to close, the BP-ADNOC partnership would acquire the 45% stake in NewMed and 5% of the issued capital from Delek Group.
On 7 October 2023, Hamas launched an attack on Israel; the conflict between Israel and Gaza continues.
NewMed also owns a stake in the undeveloped Aphrodite natural gas field, located in Block 12 of the exclusive economic zone of Cyprus. The field is located around 30 km northwest of the Leviathan field, in 1700 m of water. Aphrodite was discovered by the A-1 well in September 2011. The A-2 appraisal well, drilled in 2013, confirmed approximately 98 Bcm of contingent resource with a potential for an additional 26 Bcm of prospective resources.
Partners include Chevron and Shell. The field is estimated to hold 4.2 Tcf of gas.
