According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the American oil company Noble Energy, which is drilling in a maritime gas field in the southeastern Mediterranean near Haifa, found that the area's gas reserves might be more than 40 per cent higher than expected. However, Noble, which is based in Houston, denied the newspaper report, saying the recent seismic activity in June indicates that the figure might be 55 per cent, with the discovery of 20-23 trillion cubic meters of gas reserves. In any case, this indicates that the Tamer gas field, near Haifa, is close to the promising Lebanese coast, and that it is time for the government to pass an oil law that will allow the country to benefit from its natural gas reserves. Lebanon's problem is that pointless political disputes are wasting an opportunity that might be beneficial for the country's economy. By 2012, the Israeli sea field might produce enough gas to meet much of the domestic demand, which is currently secured through imports from Egypt. Israel intends to continue importing Egyptian gas, while America's Noble is active in drilling in waters near Lebanon. No one knows yet how much gas there is in Lebanese waters, because international companies will not come to drill before the law is passed. Then, the companies will require an investment climate and working environment that facilitate their entry into this activity. The question is whether the current political situation will allow such firms to come forward with tenders for drilling, which could take years before production begins. The Lebanese political class constantly misses good opportunities for the country, because of its disputes. The discovery and production of gas in Lebanon might be an opportunity for the country to expand its electrical capacity, and there is an urgent need for this. While true that the maritime region might contain gas reserves borders Israel, there is considerable likelihood that Israel seeks to pump from the Lebanese side, if there is a discovery. However, before this happens, we should see whether the Lebanese field is promising. Disputes within the government have begun, ever since the matter was put forward, as they say, as if “talking about the baby before the woman is pregnant.” The international giant Shell and other firms have expressed interest, but the prevailing political climate is sabotaging the efforts of these companies, since Lebanon is not an oil country, or a producer of gas. Iraq, for example, has political disputes, the absence of a Cabinet, and security conditions that have yet to stabilize, and it is missing the opportunity to accelerate the expansion of its productive capacity. However, the country's huge oil reserves, the world's second-largest after Saudi Arabia, sparked the interest of international firms, which are engaged in fierce competition to enter the market. Lebanon, meanwhile, sees its domestic disputes quickly chase away the big firms from being interested in a small country whose reserves might not be big enough to risk the effort. It is time for Lebanese officials to put their disputes aside, before it is too late.
