The Greek government is seeking to block the Turkish-Libyan deal on maritime boundaries and is preparing to to give concession for exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons in the offshore plot south of Crete.
According to daily Ta Nea, Athens is preparing a matte move in the area.
the plot is south of Crete with an area of 33,933 square kilometers. It borders with the concession “South-West of Crete” for which the companies “Total – ExxonMobil – Hellenic Petroleum” secured for exploration, following a lease agreement with the Greek State which was ratified by the Parliament.
The available block has been reportedly demarcated and is is located below the island of Gavdos and the peripheral units of Heraklion and Lassithi.
Right there, south of the eastern regional unit of Crete, passes the illegal demarcation line under the agreement between Tayyip Erdogan and Fayez Al Saraj, violating part of Greece’s sovereign rights.
Indicative for the strategy to be followed by the government is that the Minister of Environment and Energy, Kostis Hatzidakis, has issued a decision, which approves the environmental plan for conducting research and exploitation of hydrocarbons in the region “South of Crete”, based on the Strategic Environmental Impact Study.
The process of issuing the SEIS had been started by the former president and CEO of the Hellenic Hydrocarbon Management Company (EDEY), Giannis Basias, preparing the environmental plan and submitting it for public consultation from August 2019, due to great interest by oil companies.
Sources from the Ministry of Environment and Energy, confirmed to ta nea that the issuance of the decision on the SEIS is aimed at overcoming any bureaucratic obstacles so that when and if a decision is made to cede the area, the procedures will run quickly.
The block can be made available in two ways: Either the government decides to call for an international tender or, if it accepts a request from oil companies, to send a call for expressions of interest to other investors so that the concessionaire can be nominated again through a tender.
Source: keeptalkingreece.com
