Cyprus-Israel expert groups to discuss gas and electricity interconnection

The energy ministers of Cyprus and Israel have committed to initiate the technical discussion on interconnecting the two countries’ electricity grids and building a natural gas pipeline, by July the latest.

Energy Minister George Papanastasiou and his Israeli counterpart Israel Katz said after a meeting that they also committed to continue negotiations regarding the Aphrodite-Ishai issue with the goal of reaching an agreement by the end of the year.

Papanastasiou was on a two-day visit in Israel, during which the two Ministers and their professional teams discussed the electricity interconnection between Cyprus and Israel, with the goal of making progress ahead of COP28, which will be held in Dubai by the end of the year.

Papanastasiou and Katz also discussed the framework of the discussion for cooperation in the development of regional natural gas infrastructure and the Cyprus Gateway Initiative – a plan to transfer natural gas from Israeli natural gas resources to Europe through Cyprus – which had been agreed between President Nikos Christodoulides and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when they met last month. The Ministers committed to initiate technical discussion through two expert groups for electricity and gas pipeline interconnection with the aim to convene in July.

In statements, Papanastasiou reaffirmed “the strong commitment of the two countries to further strengthening and deepening Cyprus and Israel’s partnership, based on common values and shared strategic interests including energy”.

Katz said that Israel and Cyprus, through their “enduring alliance and shared vision resonate powerfully, and in the present era, the energy sector assumes a pivotal role as a bedrock for fortifying the bonds between them”.

“It is within this context that my fervent vision of propelling the State of Israel into a vibrant energy bridge connecting the East and West finds it manifestation”, Katz stressed, adding that “Cyprus stands as an indispensable partner in the realisation of this vision”.