Cyprus president: Turkish actions unfounded and unjustified

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades has slammed Turkey’s interference with Cyprus’ offshore exploration efforts as unfounded and unjustified.

To remind, according to recent reports, Turkish naval vessels last week prevented an Eni-operated drillship from moving into an offshore exploration area offshore Cyprus.

The Turkish authorities stopped the drillship on the grounds of the expected military operation at the destination. The drillship in question is the Saipem 12000.

Turkey and the Turkish Republic Northern Cyprus, a self-declared state run by Turkish Cypriots, have accused the Cyprus government of unilateral hydrocarbon-related activities in the Eastern Mediterranean, against the interest of the Turkish Cypriots.

Commenting on the recent developments, Cyprus President Anastasiades said “the statements and rhetoric by Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots are unjustified and unfounded, and do not serve the best interests of the Cypriot people. In this context, the planning of the Republic of Cyprus in the field of energy will proceed accordingly.”

“Finally, once more, I wish to publicly call on Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot community to immediately respond to my call to return to the negotiating table, provided that this is preceded by the termination of the violation of the sovereign rights of the Republic of Cyprus in its exclusive economic zone,” he said.

Below is Anastasiades’ full statement as tweeted by his official account on Wednesday:

The statements and rhetoric by Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots are unjustified and unfounded, and do not serve the best interests of the Cypriot people. In this context, the planning of the Republic of Cyprus in the field of energy will proceed accordingly. pic.twitter.com/k5ERAhzLHT

— Nicos Anastasiades (@AnastasiadesCY) February 21, 2018

Eni declined to comment on Offshore Energy Today’s request for more info on the status of the Saipem 12000 drillship.

To remind, just days before the issue with the Turkish warships, Eni confirmed making “a lean gas discovery” in Block 6 Offshore Cyprus with Calypso 1 NFW, confirming earlier reports of a discovery released by the Cypriot media.

In a statement on early in February, the oil and gas company said the well, which was drilled in 2,074 meters of water depth reaching a final total depth of 3,827 meters, encountered an extended gas column in rocks of Miocene and Cretaceous age. The Cretaceous sequence has excellent reservoir characteristics, Eni said.

“Calypso 1 is a promising gas discovery and confirms the extension of the “Zohr like” play in the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ),” Eni said, referring to its Zohr field which recently started producing offshore Egypt. Zohr is seen as the largest gas field in the Mediterranean.

Offshore Energy Today Staff