US major ExxonMobil this week spudded the Elektra wildcat on Cyprus’ deepwater Block 5. With pre-drill resource estimates as high as 30tcf, Elektra is by some distance the most important well to be drilled in the East Mediterranean this year. Speaking in November, Exxon’s outgoing upstream chief Liam Mallon ranked the East Med alongside Guyana as the two biggest new hydrocarbon provinces globally of the last three decades (MEES, 13 December 2024).
But, whilst Exxon is the dominant player off Guyana with output set to surge above 1mn b/d, it is a relatively new entrant to the East Med. However, three of the four regional wells it has drilled to date have struck gas. (CONTINUED - 359 WORDS)
