Qatar in talks with TotalEnergies for stake in Lebanon gas block

(Bloomberg) – Qatar is in talks with TotalEnergies SE and Eni SpA for a 30% stake in an exploration block in waters off Lebanon, QatarEnergy Chief Executive Officer Saad Al Kaabi said Sunday.

The company is also in talks with the Lebanese government regarding the offshore gas block, Al Kaabi said at an event in Doha.

Lebanon signed an historic agreement with Israel on Thursday that ended a decades-long dispute over maritime borders (Full story). Both countries, which are technically in a state of war, had laid claim to an area covering 860 square kilometers (330 square miles) that’s thought to be gas-rich.

The US-brokered pact will allow international companies to begin exploring for natural gas in the previously-contested waters in offshore Block 9, potentially leading to more energy exports to Europe in the coming years.

The TotalEnergies-led consortium, which included Eni and Novatek PJSC, won a bid to explore in Blocks 9 and 4 in late 2017. The group began drilling in Block 4 in 2020 but disappointing results halted further development. Russia’s Novatek withdrew this year from the exploration efforts.