The Levant basin in the Mediterranean Sea has been the site of great discovery over the past five years – that of huge natural gas reserves in the area. A little lesson in geography would be needed for the uninitiated at this point – the Levant Basin covers the shores of Israel, Lebanon, and Cyprus. Theoretical estimates of the reserves available in the Levant basin state that it could contain as much as 3 trillion cubic meters of natural gas waiting to be tapped in to fulfill the region’s growing energy demands – and this is great news for all of these countries, especially Israel.

Why is this such great news?

Because until recently, Israel and all the other countries in that region were heavily dependent on imported natural gas to take care of the energy demands. This was a taxing situation for them as it is very costly and time-consuming to keep importing gas from other countries. So when this discovery was made, it gave these countries the prospect of being self-reliant on internally produced natural gas and also the prospect of being able to export some of the natural gas to international markets including Europe.

In Israel, the Leviathan gas field alone has huge natural gas resources – and experts say that the gas contained in this field can sustain Israel’s energy needs for the next 40 years or so, which is unprecedented news for Israel’s economy and energy market.This way the natural gas in Israel ensures energy independence for the country.

What are the roadblocks to successfully utilising the gas from the Levant Basin?

Since the gas reserves are shared among so many countries in the Mediterranean Sea, all of the parties involved need to find some common ground to start sharing the reserves and come to an agreement regarding its proper division and usage. Because of the vast nature of the resources, these countries need to find a way to demarcate the exclusivity of its usage amongst themselves and create special economic zones to do the same. The proper usage of these amazing reserves can be done with international cooperation and agreement between all parties concerned.

Israel is looking forward eagerly to develop these gas fields as it is looking to break into the European energy market which has huge potential at the moment. With energy crises breaking out in the world, be it in Venezuela with the deposition of the government or in Saudi Arabia with the skirmishes with Iran, there is a vacuum that has been created and it is the perfect opportunity for Israel to establish itself as an energy supplier and to forge new partnerships and business alliances using the reserves as leverage. With the development of these reserves costing a lot of money, because the fields lie offshore, there is huge potential for foreign investment as well.