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The European Union wants to work more closely with Israel in the face of dependence on Russian gas.
The EU Commission has signed a joint declaration of intent for an energy agreement with Israel and Egypt on liquid gas supplies for Europe. The deal will enable “significant” exports of Israeli gas to Europe for the first time, Israel’s Energy Ministry said on Wednesday.
The EU had said Israel could help reduce its dependence on Russian energy in the future. The agreement was signed on the sidelines of an energy conference in the Egyptian capital Cairo, which was also attended by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
According to von der Leyen, the aim is to deliver gas from Israel via a pipeline to Egypt. There the conversion into liquid gas is planned, which can then be transported to the EU. The signing is a “very important step,” she said. The EU Commission announced in mid-May that it wanted to conclude an energy agreement with Israel and Egypt on liquid gas supplies for Europe before the summer. Large natural gas deposits were discovered off Israel.
Old project comes up for discussion again
Ursula von der Leyen had previously referred to the construction of a planned electricity connection between Israel, Cyprus and Greece in the eastern Mediterranean. In addition, a gas pipeline in the eastern Mediterranean is in preparation. In the meantime, the project had almost been abandoned. A 1,900-kilometer-long pipeline called Eastmed (Eastern Mediterranean Sea) is to route gas from Israel via Cyprus to Greece and thus to the European Union. Then it could be transported to Central Europe.
Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said after talks with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi that cooperation in the energy sector aims to ensure that gas from Israel can also be used in Europe. Draghi is currently visiting Israel. He stressed that Italy also wants to reduce its dependence on Russian gas.