ALBAWABA – The Israeli government, Sunday, announced their preliminary approval of the Gaza Strip gas field development project, Gaza Marine, conditional upon security coordination with the Palestinian Authority and Egypt, news agencies reported.
Should this project see the light, it would be a boost for a cash-strapped Palestinian economy, Reuters underlined.
However, occupation state Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office noted that progress on this project would hinge on "preserving the State of Israel's security and diplomatic needs".
Natural gas reserves in the Gaza Marine field are estimated at over 1 trillion cubic feet.
According to Reuters, this exceeds the amount needed to power the Palestinian territories, and could potentially even be exported.
Former Egyptian Foreign Minister assistant, Ambassador Abdullah al-Ashaal, said in an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed (the New Arab) that Egypt is working with the Israelis to achieve economic peace.
“Egypt is cooperating with the Israeli side regarding what is called the ‘economic peace project’ instead of political peace,” he said.
This project would render Palestinians “biologically alive, sans any political rights,” the ambassador reaffirmed.
"The Israeli authority will benefit from this coordination, as will the Palestinian Authority. But the Egyptian side will reap no real benefit from this, apart from looking for a role in the region.”
Gaza Marine is the oldest field that has been explored in the eastern Mediterranean, Khaled Fouad told the New Arab, a political researcher and specialist in energy affairs and Middle East issues.
The project is worth $1.4 billion, according to the Middle East Monitor.
Who benefits from the Gaza Marine project?
It was discovered by Shell company back in the year 2000, he said, “which owns the rights to the field”.
Shell abandoned the project in 2018 after losing hope for any investment in the field, Fouad said.
The Israelis rejected any attempt or proposal to operate the field, he underlined.
“Developing the field or extracting gas from it will greatly benefit the Palestinian Authority, and most importantly, it will benefit Hamas and the Palestinian resistance.”
However, things have changed today.
Israelis now have multiple fields operating in the Mediterranean, which occasionally fell under threat from militant groups in Palestine and elsewhere.
Production was suspended several times in the past couple of years, due to imminent threats, Fouad explained.
Contrary to Ashaal, Fouad thinks that Egypt does have something to gain from the realization of the Gaza Marine project.
Egypt will benefit “economically and politically”, he said.
Aside from restoring its role in the Palestinian cause, "Egypt has been keen for years to become a regional platform for the export of natural gas in the region,” Fouad contended. Moreover, sending surplus gas to Egyptian liquefaction stations will significantly benefit Egypt economically.
