New NAVTEX for surveys south-west of Crete and Peloponnese – The operational scope is extended

It expands operational field in marine plots southwest of Crete and the Peloponnesewhere Greece will perform hydrocarbon investigations.

In collaboration with Malta, new NAVTEX issued, according to which a larger sea area is reserved. The supplementary NAVTEX was issued by Malta as it is outside the boundaries of the Greek FIR and increases the area from 27,000 to 31,500 square kilometers.

Greece asked Malta to issue NAVTEX as we have no demarcation in that area and the NAVTEX issue limits are the limits of our FIR. In essence, Malta recognizes Greece’s right to research in the area.

As mentioned in NAVTEX the new geographical coordinates refer to “EKPOMPH APO MALTA NAVTEX SERVICE”.

It is recalled that this particular NAVTEX informs that from November 8 until later, equipment will be deployed and seismic surveys will be carried out from the ship SANCO SWIFT’, in the Ionian sea, the western sea and west and south-west of Crete.

With the same navtex, passing ships are urged to keep a safe distance.

There will be a discreet presence of the navy at the site, while an exercise will be carried out until mid-November with several ships of the fleet. More generally, there will be vigilance and preparedness for any eventuality.

See the map of the new NAVTEX:

The original NAVTEX issued by the Heraklion station

Earlier on Tuesday, NAVTEX for the seismic surveys of the ship SANCO SWIFT in Crete and Peloponnese, quickly issued the Navy. NAVTEX was issued by the Heraklion station of the PN.

NAVTEX predicts that from today, November 8, 2022 and until further notice, areas in the Ionian Sea, the Western Sea and west and east of Crete are reserved for the Nanco Swift ship to carry out equipment development and seismic surveys.

Marine area area 40,000 square kilometers cover the two plots of land west and south-west of Crete, in which, as Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Monday, seismic surveys will immediately begin to investigate the existence of hydrocarbon deposits.

In both areas the majority of exploration rights belong to ExxonMobil which, after the withdrawal of the French TotalEnergies, controls 70% of the rights while the remaining 30% belongs to Hellenic Energy (ELPE).

The lease contracts of the two areas were ratified by the Parliament in 2019.

According to a recent update from the Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Company (EDEFEP), the ExxonMobil – ELPE consortium has submitted a quantitatively and qualitatively upgraded program of seismic surveys with the aim of completing the surveys in two instead of three years, so that there is a clear picture at the end of 2023.

Seismic surveys provide companies with the information necessary to decide whether to proceed with exploratory drilling, which in areas such as those west and south-west of Crete is of high cost due to the great depth of the sea.

According to EDEFEP, “it is for the most promising area for the existence of large natural gas deposits, but also for the less mature one, where the immediate acquisition of seismic data is imperative”.

Last week, the Council of State heard an application to cancel the ministerial decision on environmental approval of the hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation program in the two marine areas (“Southwest Crete” and “West Crete”).

The appeal was filed in May 2019 by the environmental organizations WWF Greece, Greenpeace and the Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute.

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