Chevron becomes operator of two Israeli natural gas fields

Oct 6, 2020

Three months after announcing its intention to buy Nobel Energy, US petrol and gas conglomerate Chevron said Oct. 5 it has completed the acquisition process. The news came after Chevron’s stakeholders approved the $4.1 billion deal. With the purchase, Chevron now owns major stakes in Israel’s offshore natural gas fields Tamar and Leviathan.

“We are pleased to welcome Noble Energy’s employees and shareholders to Chevron. Noble’s high-quality assets complement Chevron’s advantaged upstream portfolio, and the combination is expected to deliver strong financial benefits,” Chevron CEO Michael Wirth said.

Shortly after the announcement, Chevron President of Middle East and North Africa operations Clay Neff contacted Israel’s Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, briefing him that the deal had been finalized.

Steinitz hailed the announcement as tremendous news for Israel’s economy and for its energy industry, saying, “I spoke today with Clay Neff who is responsible for Chevron’s operations in the Middle East and he informed me that the merger with Noble Energy had been completed. The entry of an international oil major is huge news for the Israeli economy and opens up opportunities for investment in the high-tech sector and startups in the field of energy.”

Noble Energy held 25% of the Tamar field and 40% of Leviathan. These stakes in the Israeli fields were reportedly a key element of the deal with Chevron. According to estimates, the Tamar and Leviathan fields, discovered in 2009 and 2010, respectively, collectively hold some 26 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Once developed, these fields could satisfy Israel’s internal electricity needs for the next three decades. They could even turn Israel into a regional natural gas exporter.