Lebanese Petroleum Administration said Lebanon will start in 2020 oil and gas exploration in Block 9 of its territorial waters regardless of the negotiations with Israel about border demarcation, local media reported last Saturday.
“We will prepare for oil and gas exploration in Block 9 this year and we will be drilling at a distance from the borders with Israel,” Nasr said in an interview with Elnashra, an online independent newspaper.
Nasr said that it is currently hard to assess if Lebanon has a wealth of oil and gas and companies may not find any resources in the well that’s currently being drilled by Total in Block 4.
“Sometimes we need to drill five wells to find oil and gas,” Nasr explained.
Lebanon hopes to give a big boost to its economy through offshore energy discovery.