Head of global exploration for ExxonMobil, John Ardill, announced on Tuesday a drilling rig will be back in Cyprus in December to conduct additional drilling operations and testing operations at the Pegasus discovery in Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone.
Ardill, who was received at the Presidential Palace by President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides, in the presence of Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry Michalis Damianos, said that these activities will contribute to paving the way for the submission of the field’s development and production plan next year, which he said is a significant next step in advancing the project.
The Minister of Energy said that everything is proceeding according to the established timelines, with a final investment decision for Glafkos and Pegasus expected in 2029, and the first natural gas expected in 2033.
Ardill said that they are delighted to be back in Cyprus following our declaration of commerciality for the Glafkos-Pegasus discovery earlier this year.
“We came back to give the President and his team an update on all the progress we’ve made this year and then looking ahead to our forward plans” he went on to say.
He added that he is “happy to share that we will have a drilling rig back in Cyprus later this year in December and we’ll conduct additional drilling operations and testing operations at the Pegasus discovery.”
These operations, he added, “will help form the path to submit our development and production plan next year, which is a key next step in progressing the project.”
In addition, he noted, they will make new seismic explorations early next year.
“So we’ll have a lot of operations just ahead of us” Ardill said, adding that they have worked with the Ministry and the Minister’s team to make sure they are fully aligned and executing as quickly as possible.
In his statements, Minister Damianos said that they held a very constructive meeting with the ExxonMobil delegation, during which they were briefed on developments regarding the Glafkos and Pegasus fields.
‘We are also moving forward with new drilling operations this year, scheduled for December and we were also updated on further developments within the EEZ’ he said.
The Minister of Energy added that the discussion also covered blocks 4 and 10A.
‘Everything is proceeding according to the established timelines, with the final investment decision expected in 2029 and the first natural gas in 2033,’ he noted.
Replying to questions, he clarified that the final investment decision concerns the Glafkos and Pegasus fields.
Asked whether an agreement has been reached regarding blocks 4 and 10A, or if specific timelines have been set for when they will be made available for exploitation, the Minister of Energy said that at present, “we are in the legal phase of discussions concerning the signing of various contracts, based on our own criteria.”
The Minister added that there is a window of 2-3 months to finalise these agreements so that progress can be made on those as well.
However, he concluded, the priority remains the Glafkos and Pegasus fields, based on the timelines.
Meanwhile, according to a written statement by the Presidency, Ardill said that everything is in place for drilling to commence in December.
The press release says that President Christodoulides and the ExxonMobil Vice President, in the presence of the Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry, “discussed the next steps regarding the development of the discoveries in the ‘Glafkos’ and ‘Pegasus’ in block 10 of the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).”
It is noted that President Christodoulides was informed by the ExxonMobil Vice President that the drilling teams have been reinforced with additional personnel to ensure that operations proceed at a rapid pace.
Moreover, the President of the Republic, the press release says, was briefed on the operational schedule for the coming months, as well as on broader aspects of the project.
“Within the coming year, we will submit a development and production plan to the Government for review,” Ardill said, adding that their goal is to proceed with the implementation of the project as soon as possible, the Presidency’s press release concludes.