Meged oil field explained

Meged oil field
Country:Israel
Region:Central District
Location:Rosh HaAyin
Offonshore:Onshore
Location Map:Israel
Location Map Text:Location of the Meged oil field within Israel
Coordinates:32.0409°N 35.0002°W
Operator:Givot Olam
Discovery:2004
Start Development:2004
Start Production:2010
Est Oil Bbl:1525
Est Oil T:200

The Meged oil field is an oil field that was first discovered in the 1980s but declared to not be commercially viable at the time.[1] In 2004, declared to have made it commercially viable to drill. It is one of the largest on-shore oil fields in Israel. It began production in 2010 and produces oil as well as some natural gas. Its proven oil reserves are about .[2]

Overview

The Meged oil field is located near the towns of Kfar Saba and Rosh Ha'Ayin in Israel. It is situated close to the southern tip of the Palmyra rift system, a geological formation that extends across Syria to the northeast.[3] Givot Olam, which owns and operates the Meged license,[4] first announced its discovery of the Meged field in April 2004. The field spans 200 square kilometers.[5]

In early January 2012, Givot Olam reported that the state had rejected the company's proposal to drill at Meged wells 6, 7 and 8.[17] Later in the month Givot reported that it had obtained approval to proceed with drilling operations at Meged wells 5, 6 and 14.[18]

Agreements

In 2010, Givot Olam sold 240 barrels of oil obtained from Meged 5 to Oil Refineries Ltd (BAZAN), an Israeli oil refining company.[19]

During the first quarter of 2011 Givot sold NIS4.6 million worth of crude oil extracted from the Meged field to refineries.

An agreement signed between Givot Olam and Natural Gas for Israel Ltd. (GTL) in March 2012 stipulated that the former would supply natural gas to GTL from the Meged 5 well for a period of three years in exchange for $4.4 million, beginning in 2013.[20]

Religion

Givot Olam founder Tovia Luskin was drawn to the Meged site after interpreting a geological survey of the area in 1988 as confirming a biblical passage in the Book of Deuteronomy (33:15) and its associated commentary by Rashi.[21] According to Luskin, he visited the Lubavitcher Rebbe in New York in 1990 and received a blessing from him.[22] [23] [24]

In order to accommodate Jewish religious proscriptions against performing labor on the Sabbath, in 2011 Givot Olam introduced Shabbat clocks into its production system to obviate the use of manual faucets.[25]

Land rights

With the location of Meged Oil field close to the border between Israel and the West Bank, it is subject to a dispute over ownership rights.

Palestinians claim that Givot Olam decided that the field is commercially viable only after the creation of the Israeli West Bank barrier to the west of the field, which they claim is located within the borders of the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate.[26]

According to a source in the Palestinian Authority, 80% of the Meged oil field is on land owned by Palestinians.[27] Efraim Sneh has stated that although the oil drilling site is in Israel the oil reservoir may extend to the West Bank near the West Bank village of Rantis. Sneh suggested that cooperation between the Israeli and Palestinian sides could lead to the construction of a joint oil pipeline.[28]

Fracking

According to reports published by Givot Olam, the methods used in determining the potential for oil extraction at some of the Meged wells involve fracking.[29] [30]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Enav. Peter. Drilling for the future in Israel. 30 January 2012. Spartanburg Herald-Journal. 12 September 2004. Associated Press. Jerusalem. E7.
  2. Web site: Gevaot Olam: Meged 5 Oil Field Has 1.5 Billion Barrels. August 17, 2010. Arutz Sheva. 1 January 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20120328113622/http://www.allvoices.com/s/event-6537044/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5pc3JhZWxuYXRpb25hbG5ld3MuY29tL05ld3MvRmxhc2guYXNweC8xOTIzMTc=. 28 March 2012. dead.
  3. News: Moses's oily blessing. 6 May 2012. The Economist. 16 June 2005. Jerusalem.
  4. News: Kedmi. Sharon. Givot Olam ends stage 1 of Kfar Saba horizontal drill. 5 May 2012. Haaretz. 27 December 2004. Givot Olam holds the license for the Meged site, which stretches over 200 square kilometers in the Sharon area, and holds exclusive drilling rights in the area, in proximity to Kfar Saba and Rosh Ha'ayin..
  5. News: Malichi. Asaf. American company to invest $50 million in Israeli oil well. 6 May 2012. Ynetnews. 5 March 2007. Findings from Meged confirm the existence of an oil field spanning over 200 square kilometers (50,000 acres)..
  6. News: Arlozorov. Merav. Signs of Oil at Givot Olam - Week Before Rights Issue. 5 May 2012. Globes. 10 December 1998.
  7. News: Mosnaim. Ilan. Givot Olam to carry out tests at Meged-4. 5 May 2012. Haaretz. 9 April 2003.
  8. News: Hayoun. David. Givot Olam abandons Meged 3 prospect near Rosh Ha'Ayin: Not enough gas. 5 May 2012. Globes. 31 October 2000.
  9. News: Hayoun. David. Oil exploration co Givot Olam to invest $6m in Sharon prospect. 5 May 2012. Globes. 18 November 2002.
  10. News: Mosnaim. Ilan. Company strikes oil near Kfar Saba. 5 May 2012. Haaretz. 24 February 2003.
  11. News: Levy. Tal. Givot Olam throws in towel at Meged 4; share drops 9 percent. 6 May 2012. Haaretz. 22 August 2005. About 64 barrels of oil were produced during the test, but its flow ceased, and therefore, 'horizontal drilling operations were halted and the equipment will be released.'.
  12. News: he:גבעות דיווחה כי גילתה 'כמויות משמעותיות של נפט' בראש העין. http://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1000525111. 6 May 2012. Globes. 24 December 2009. Ben-Israel, Adi. Harman, Uriel. Hebrew. Givot announced that it discovered 'significant quantities of oil' in Rosh Ha'Ayin. כך, למשל, בדצמבר 2004 הודיעה החברה כי מצאה נפט בקידוח 'מגד 4', אך באוגוסט 2005 מסרה כי הקידוח נגמר ללא תוצאות מסחריות והעבודות שם הופסקו..
  13. News: Zano. Lior. Israeli company finds oil beneath Rosh Ha'ayin. 5 May 2012. Haaretz. 24 December 2009.
  14. News: Givot Olam says Meged 5 well producing at 800 barrels a day. 5 May 2012. TheMarker/Haaretz. 24 June 2011. Zeno, Lior. Azran, Eran.
  15. News: Ben-Israel. Adi. Photographers turned away from Givot Olam drill site. 5 May 2012. Globes. 24 December 2009. The well is located in an IDF firing zone, and Luskin promised to arrange an entry permit from the IDF.. dead. https://archive.today/20120707221209/http://archive.globes.co.il/searchgl/The%20company%20issued%20a%20clarification%20of%20an%20earlier%20report._s_hd_2L34nE3SmCbmnC30mDJ8rCpCnBcXqRMm0.html. 7 July 2012.
  16. News: Givot Olam begins drilling Meged 6 well. 20 June 2013. Globes. 20 June 2013. globes.
  17. News: Givot request to drill 3 new Meged wells rejected. 30 January 2012. Globes. 8 January 2012.
  18. News: Koren. Hillel. Energy Ministry approves Meged 6 field development. 30 January 2012. Globes. 30 January 2012.
  19. News: Ben Yisrael. Adi. he:בעיצומם של מבחני ההפקה: גבעות מכרה 240 חביות נפט לבז"ן. http://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1000564096. 5 May 2012. Globes. 2 June 2010. Hebrew. In the course of the extraction tests: Givot sold 240 barrels of oil to BAZAN.
  20. News: Givot signs $4.4m contract for Meged 5 gas. 1 April 2012. Globes. 21 March 2012.
  21. News: Shamah. David. Oil magnate: Israeli tech can solve the world's energy crisis, if red tape doesn't tie it up. 4 May 2012. The Times of Israel. 25 April 2012.
  22. Web site: Enav. Peter. An Israeli seeks oil in a land lacking it. Houston Chronicle. 13 June 2014. 12 September 2004.
  23. Web site: Yisraeli. David. Blessings Materialize: Oil Production in Israel. Chabad. 30 January 2012. 10 June 2011.
  24. News: Yeshayahou. Koby. Chabad article boosts Givot's share price. 30 January 2012. Globes. 12 June 2011.
  25. News: Givot Olam Presents: Drilling for Oil Without Violating Shabbat. 5 May 2012. Arutz Sheva. 28 June 2011. Benari, Elad. Kempinsky, Yoni.
  26. Web site: Israel is stealing Palestinian oil and gas. Middle East Monitor. 19 June 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20140127214558/https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/middle-east/6331-israel-is-stealing-palestinian-oil-and-gas. 27 January 2014. dead.
  27. News: Mar'i. Mohammed. PA accuses Israel of drilling for oil in West Bank. 1 December 2013. Arab News. 13 January 2012.
  28. News: Barkat. Amiram. 'Givot can meet 10% of Israel's oil consumption'. 1 April 2012. Globes. 19 March 2012.
  29. News: he:גבעות שוב מבהירה: קצב ההפקה הכולל הצפוי מ'מגד 5' - 1,400 חביות ביום. http://www.nrg.co.il/online/16/ART2/219/357.html. 2 February 2012. Nrg Maariv. 7 March 2011. Hebrew. Givot again issues clarification: expected overall rate of production from 'Meged 5' – 1,400 barrels a day.
  30. News: Yeshayahou. Koby. he:גבעות: נבצע את ה'פראק' במקטע 8 במהלך השבוע הקרוב. http://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1000619012. 2 February 2012. Globes. 30 January 2011. Hebrew. Givot: We will perform 'fracking' at segment 8 next week.

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