QatarEnergy will take a 30% stake of Block 8, while TotalEnergies, which is the operator of the block, and Eni will each hold 35%.
QatarEnergy has joined Block 8, an offshore exploration zone in Lebanon, under an agreement signed Friday in Beirut with the Lebanese government, TotalEnergies, and Eni.
According to statement published by the company, QatarEnergy QatarEnergy will take a 30% stake of Block 8, while TotalEnergies, which is the operator of the block, and Eni will each hold 35%.
Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs and President and CEO of QatarEnergy, said the acquisition would support the development of Lebanon’s upstream sector and reaffirm the State of Qatar’s ongoing commitment towards a brighter future for Lebanon and its people.”
The signing ceremony was attended by Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Energy and Water Minister Joe Saddi, along with senior representatives from the three companies, including QatarEnergy’s Head of Exploration Ali Abdullah Al-Mannai, TotalEnergies Lebanon Director Roman de La Martinière and Eni Lebanon Director Andrea Cossi. Gaby Daaboul, President of Lebanon’s Petroleum Administration, was also present.
Ahead of the signing, Daaboul noted that Lebanon had relaunched offshore oil and gas exploration in 2023, when the same consortium drilled an exploratory well in Block 9, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency.
He said the Block 8 agreement includes a 1,200-square-kilometre 3D seismic survey, to be followed by an exploration well in the second phase depending on survey results.
After the ceremony, Minister Saddi said the agreement underscored the consortium’s commitment to continue exploration in Lebanon despite previous challenges.
TotalEnergies confirmed in a statement that the work would begin with the 3D seismic survey to evaluate the block’s potential.
Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, said that although drilling at the Qana prospect in Block 9 did not yield positive results, the company remained committed to Lebanon. “We will now focus our efforts on Block 8, together with our partners Eni and QatarEnergy and in close cooperation with Lebanese authorities,” he added.
Block 8 is located around 70 kilometres off Lebanon’s southern coast, in waters approximately 1,700 to 2,100 metres deep.
QatarEnergy’s participation builds on its entry into the consortium in January 2023, when it replaced Russia’s Novatek and took a stake of 30% alongside 35% shares each for TotalEnergies and Eni.
