Cypriot energy minister Natasa Pilides
Exit options still cloud Cyprus gas optimism
Post-pandemic green shoots for the island nation’s fledgling upstream industry are blighted by the same old questions
The first drilling in Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) since Covid-19 disrupted global upstream activities will kick off this week, energy minister Natasa Pilides told December’s World Petroleum Congress in Houston. The work involves an appraisal well at the 5-8tn ft³ Glaucus discovery in block 10. And, at the end of last week, Glaucus partners ExxonMobil and Mideast Gulf NOC QatarEnergy signed an exploration and production-sharing contract for block 5, southwest of the island. These are promising signs. But the perennial question mark over monetising Cyprus’ existing and potential future gas discoveries remains. Pilides was speaking on a panel specifically discussing cross-border coope
Also in this section
9 January 2026
The Latin American producer’s crude prospects rely on a multi-pronged approach where even the relatively easy wins will take considerable time, effort and cost
9 January 2026
While many forecasters are reasserting the importance of oil and gas, petrostates should be under no illusion things are changing, and faster than they might think
8 January 2026
Indonesia and Malaysia are at the dawn of breathtaking digital capabilities. Their energy infrastructure must keep up with their ambitions
8 January 2026
The next five years will be critical for the North Sea, and it will be policy not geology that will decide the basin’s future
