Delek finishes tests on El Arish-Ashkelon pipeline setting up EMG acquisition for August

Delek Drilling has completed tests on the subsea Eastern Mediterranean Gas (EMG) pipeline linking Israel and Egypt, paving the way for Delek, Noble Energy and East Gas to complete their acquisition of a 39% stake in EMG by the end of August, the company said yesterday (pdf). The Israeli company confirmed that the pipeline is fit to transport up to 7 bcm of natural gas per year, removing doubts cast last year on its integrity. We noted local reports yesterday that the Delek consortium has postponed Egypt-bound gas shipments until the end of 2019 due to high gas demand in Israel during the summer. Shipments from Israel’s offshore fields which were originally expected to start at the end of June.