An aeriel view of the Israeli gas rig Tamar, situated off the Israeli northern coast. Photo: Albatross Aerial photography / Nobel Energy / Flash90.

i24 News – Israeli energy company Delek Drilling announced on Monday that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been signed with Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Petroleum to sell Delek’s 22% stake in the eastern Mediterranean natural gas field Tamar for $1.1 billion.

If finalized, it would mark the biggest deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates since the Abraham Accords normalized relations between the two countries last September.

“We are proud to have signed this MoU following the Abraham Accords Peace Agreement between Israel and the UAE,” Yossi Abu, CEO of Delek Drilling, said in a statement. “The development is not only a significant endorsement of the quality of the Tamar reservoir and the Levant basin but also a major support for the East Mediterranean Natural Gas sector.”

The Tamar field, discovered in 2009, is located approximately 90 kilometers (56 miles) off the coast of Haifa. Production began in 2013 with the natural gas extracted through five production wells.

Chevron, which operates the field, holds a 25% stake in it. Chevron took over operations of both Tamar and the nearby Leviathan gas field in July 2020 from Noble Energy in a deal valued at $5 billion.

Delek is required by the Israeli government to sell its Tamar holdings by the end of the year as part of a natural gas framework to make the market more competitive.