Petroleum production

The imposition of new environmental regulations for the consumption of low-sulfur fuel by oceangoing vessels has seen the liquefied natural gas (LNG) market take center stage in global shipping, with Greek shippers recently overtaking the Japanese as the top owners, after ordering a large number of vessels since 2018, according to a VesselsValue report published on Wednesday.

Private Greek industrial group Mytilineos has overtaken incumbent DEPA to become the country's biggest LNG importer this year, the first time in history that an independent company has knocked the state-owned company from the top spot, ICIS an information platform on petrochemicals and specifically on energy issues, fertilisers and other commodities said in a report.

Three joint ventures have been selected by Cyprus in the first stage of a tender to provide a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) to import liquefied natural gas (LNG).
The first joint venture is led by China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering, Natural Gas Public Company of Cyprus (DEFA) said on its website.

Global orders for new oceangoing vessels dropped to record lows after the year's second quarter, but Greek shipowners remained the leaders in orders across the entire range of tankers and liquefied natural gas carriers, according to a survey by VesselsValue.

The shortsea shipping industry is being left behind in the effort to adjust to new global environmental regulations despite it being the maritime domain that needs clean fuel the most. Still, the positive impact of these regulations is the subject of some dispute.

Imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) are hampered by the decision of the Regulatory Authority for Energy over the pricing of the natural gas network, reversing the strategic advantages of the Revythousa terminal for the broader region and depriving Greek enterprises of a relatively cheap source of energy.

The number of new liquefied natural gas-powered vessels will almost double around the globe this year, as the deadline for slashing the sulfur content of bunker fuel is fast approaching, but their further increase to significant figures greatly depends on the improvement of infrastructure, a senior market monitoring official tells Kathimerini English Edition.

The U.S. has urged Turkey to reconsider its decision to start offshore drilling operations in Cyprus, according to a statement.     

The State Department is calling on Turkey to reverse its decision to begin drilling operations within Cyprus' Exclusive Economic Zone.

In a statement, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus calls the decision "highly provocative" that "risks raising tensions in the region."

Greek energy firm Energean has made a vast discovery of 28-42 billion cubic meters of natural gas in the North Karish field off Israel's northwest coast, the company said on Monday.
The discovery is located not far from the company's floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit, which aims for a total export capacity of 8 billion cubic meters per year.