Greece Signs Hydrocarbon Exploration Deal, Eyeing EUR4.4bn

After a hiatus of 15 years, Greece’s hydrocarbon industry started to swing back into action Wednesday. Three energy consortia signed concessions for the exploitation of hydrocarbon deposits in western and northern Greece that it is hoped could yield the country some six billion US dollars (4.38 billion euros). The prospectors will invest 700 million euros to extract an estimated six billion cubic metres of gas in Ioannina, with around 250-305 million barrels of oil under the Gulf of Patrikaos and off the Katakolo coast. Wednesday’s signing ceremony was hosted by Yiannis Maniatis at his Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change and attended by British Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Edward Davey and Canada’s Ambassador to Greece Robert Peck, who witnessed Greece’s Deputy Prime Minister Evangelos Venizelos sign concessions to Energean Oil and Petra Petroleum for Ioannina, to Hellenic Petroleum, Edison and Petroceltic for the Patraikos Gulf, and to Energean Oil and Trajan Oil & Gas for Katakolo. During his speech, Venizelos stressed that Greece’s priority is to delineate certain zones with all neighboring countries according to marine law, noting that the investment will benefit economic development, social solidarity and the exercise of sovereignty over national rights.    

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