The natural gas reserve discovered off the shores of Haifa is approximately 25 to 30 percent richer than previously assessed, US oil operator Noble Energy Inc., said after drilling to verify the find.
The site, previously assessed to hold more than 142 billion cubic meters (BCM) of natural gas, may in fact hold as much as 180 BCM.
The potential revenue from selling gas from the offshore reserve may reach $30-35 billion.
At the end of April, drilling to verify the size of the reserve was conducted at a site dubbed Tamar 2, north of Tamar 1. Over the last few days, electronic testing suggested that the amounts of gas at the Tamar reserve were higher than initially expected.
In related news, a site called Dalit, west of the coast of Hadera, was assessed to hold some 14 BCM of natural gas.
