Lebanon to UN: Protect our gas from Israeli drilling

Lebanese FM Shami sends letter to Ban Ki-Moon, urging him to "prevent Israel from exploiting Lebanon's oil and maritime wealth."

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
leviathan gas drill (photo credit: (Albatross))
leviathan gas drill
(photo credit: (Albatross))
Lebanese Foreign Minister Ali Shami sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon late Tuesday, urging him to "prevent Israel from exploiting Lebanon's oil and maritime wealth."
Lebanese officials accuse Israel of drilling in fields that extend into Lebanon. Israel denies the allegation.
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The letter came a week after an energy corporation which owns a share of an offshore natural gas reserve said the project contains some 16 trillion cubic feet of gas worth an estimated $45 billion.
Noble Energy Inc., which owns 39.66% of the prospect, said the massive store of natural gas in the “Leviathan” reserve – the largest of its kind discovered in the world in the last decade – “has the potential to position Israel as a natural gas- exporting nation.”
Leviathan is located in 1,650 feet of water about 129 km. northwest of the coast of Haifa.
The site is about 47 km. southwest of the “Tamar” drill site, estimated to be worth $15 billion.
Ben Hartman contributed to this report