This is the second such discovery made by the consortium off Cyprus following a significant finding made in 2019 on Block 10.

A consortium led by QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil has discovered a new natural gas deposit offshore Cyprus, the Cypriot government announced on Monday.

The find was made at the “Pegasus-1” well in Block 10 within Cyprus’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Located about 190 kilometres southwest of Cyprus, the deposit contains an estimated 350 metres of gas-bearing reservoir, according to the government statement.

“The well was safely drilled by the “Valaris DS-9” drillship in 1,921 metres of water,” the statement added.

The new discovery will undergo further analysis in the next months to evaluate the results.

Experts say the discovery of the natural gas reserve will bolster energy supply diversification as Europe moves away from reliance on Russian hydrocarbons.

“Washington and Brussels would be wise to support this hydrocarbon network to develop a greater measure of critical energy independence for Europe’s hopeful re-industrialisation,” a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and geopolitical strategist at Trilogy Advisors in Washington John Sitilides said.

This is not the first discovery of natural gas deposits made by the joint QatarEnergy-ExxonMobil consortium.

In 2019, a major discovery was announced at the Glaucus-1 prospect in Block 10, situated in the Eastern Mediterranean about 180 kilometers southwest of the Limassol port, off the coast of Cyprus.

The Glaucus-1 well revealed around 133 meters of gas-bearing reservoir. Drilling was completed safely, reaching a depth of approximately 4,200 meters, with the well located in waters about 2,063 meters deep.

The ExxonMobil–QatarEnergy consortium holds exploration licenses for two blocks within Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone.