Greece allowed the resumption of preliminary survey work to extend an electrical cable connecting it to Cyprus and then to Israel, according to what the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced.
The huge project aims to connect the electricity networks in Greece and Cyprus, and then Israel in a second phase, via a high-voltage direct current submarine cable, with a length of about 1,208 kilometers, including 900 kilometers between Crete and Cyprus, and 310 kilometers between Cyprus and Israel.
The French cable manufacturer Nexans is participating in the project. Based on the company’s request, Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis issued a “licensing decision for the survey work necessary to extend the electrical interconnection cable,” according to a ministry statement issued on Friday evening.
The statement stated that the license was accompanied by the issuance of a navigational notice (NAFTEX) off the Greek island of Crete in the south and Cyprus, to enable the French ship “Abyei Marengo” to begin surveying work for “Nexans.” The ship arrived in late October at the port of Heraklion, the capital of Crete.
The Greek News Agency quoted a diplomatic source as saying, “Abyei Marengo’s work will be carried out according to the schedule set by the company, in Greek and Cypriot waters and areas located within the continental shelf of Greece and Cyprus.”
In the summer of 2023, “Nexans” won a contract worth 1.43 billion euros to construct the part between Cyprus and Greece of the “Eurasia” electrical interconnection project, which was described as “the largest electrical interconnection project in history.”
Cyprus is the only European country not connected to the gas grid or the electricity grid on the European continent. The project has been stalled since January due to “discussions at the political level, especially the European one,” according to Nexans.
In 2024, Türkiye, Greece's neighbor, objected to conducting studies to measure water depths in the marine area off the Greek island of Kasos, near its western coast.
Iraqi Oil Minister Bassem Muhammad Khudair said on Saturday that his country produces more than 5 million barrels of oil per day.
A conflict that lasted for years caused severe damage to Iraq. It forced him to significantly reduce his exports, and deprived the state of oil revenues, which constituted 88 percent of government revenues last year.
The Iraqi News Agency quoted the minister as saying, “Iraq produces more than 5 million barrels of oil daily, and there is a difference between the production capacity and its export capacity for Iraq.” He stated that OPEC imposes on Iraq a production capacity of up to 4 million and 330 thousand barrels per day at a time when production exceeds the ceiling of 5 million barrels, indicating that the Ministry of Oil is committed to the export ceiling set by OPEC.
He added, “There is a dialogue with OPEC to raise the ceiling on exports, given the specificity that Iraq enjoys and the nature of the circumstances it has gone through over the past five decades, and Iraq deserves to raise production rates in order to provide the necessary financial returns to develop infrastructure and implement government plans.”
Iraq is moving towards implementing plans to raise crude oil production rates to 10 million barrels per day by 2030, in cooperation with major international oil companies. American companies, most notably ExxonMobil and Chevron, are currently engaged in negotiations in Iraq to win investments in the “West Qurna I” and “Majnoon” fields, which are two of the giant fields in Iraq, and other fields in Dhi Qar Governorate, to support Iraq’s plans to increase the production capacities of crude oil.
The Chinese Central Bank continued to buy gold in October, as part of its operations that it began two years ago, while the precious metal declined by about 7 percent, ending the month at a level below the $4,000 per ounce barrier.
According to official data issued on Saturday, the volume of bullion holdings at the People’s Bank of China increased by 830,000 ounces in October, or about 25.8 metric tons, according to Bloomberg News Agency, on Saturday.
This is the 24th consecutive month of purchases, which the Central Bank has enhanced in recent months, with the decline in gold prices, as the total quantities added in the first ten months of the year amounted to about 129 metric tons.
