TotalEnergies of France and Italy's Eni announced a significant natural gas discovery at the Cronos-1 well off Cyprus.
Preliminary estimates indicate about 2.5 tcf of gas in place, with significant additional upside that will be investigated by a further exploration well in the area," Eni said in a statement regarding the latest discovery.
The well was drilled by Vantage Drilling’s ultra deepwater drillship Tungsten Explorer.
It marks the third offshore gas find reported in waters off Cyprus, all of them still untapped, and comes as the European Union seeks alternative supply to Russian gas after Moscow's February invasion of Ukraine.
Cyprus and the companies are 'already processing ways to expedite and optimize use of this new discovery, (which will) contribute to efforts of Europe in boosting its energy security,' Cyprus's Energy Ministry said.
"This successful exploration well at Cronos-1 is another illustration of the impact of our exploration strategy which is focused on discovering resources with low technical cost and low carbon emissions, said Kevin McLachlan, senior vice president for exploration at TotalEnergies.
He said additional sources of gas supply would contribute to Europe's energy security.
"Studies on a fast-track development options are already ongoing," Eni said.
Source: Reuters
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