The arrival today in Athens of a Chevron delegation to finalize yet another agreement regarding the company’s entry into a fifth block, known as Block 10, off the coast of the Gulf of Kyparissia, in the southern Ionian Sea, which until now was held by Hellenic Energy, was announced by the Minister of Environment and Energy, Mr. Stavros Papastavrou, speaking this morning on ANT1 and on the program “Good Morning Greece,” with journalists Panagiotis Stathis and Stefanos Siskos.
Specifically, Mr. Papastavrou emphasized that Chevron’s entry into a fifth offshore block in our country follows its entry into the two offshore blocks south of Crete and the two south of the Peloponnese, thereby expanding Chevron’s presence in Greece. Specifically, all procedures have been finalized, following a request from Chevron and HELLENiQ ENERGY for Chevron’s participation in the Block 10 concession, as well as for the transfer of the role of operator from HELLENiQ ENERGY to Chevron.
As the Minister stated, “a meeting will be held at the Ministry at noon today to formalize this agreement, which concerns a plot of land outside the Gulf of Kyparissia. This development demonstrates Chevron’s interest in expanding its presence in our country and essentially brings us closer to our efforts to develop the hydrocarbon sector,” he noted, while emphasizing that the first exploratory drilling will take place in February 2027, in the Northwest Ionian Sea, by the ExxonMobil-Energean-Helleniq Energy consortium.
Commenting on developments in the Iran-U.S. conflict, he noted that there is an immediate de-escalation of hostilities, while, according to reports, the Strait of Hormuz is also reopening. “The markets have already interpreted this, as oil and natural gas prices are falling by 5% in Asian markets. Essentially, if the agreement is confirmed, stability will be restored in the region, which will bring normalcy to the global economy,” he noted, while also emphasizing that we will continue to see the consequences of the war for several more weeks or even months.
At the same time, Mr. Papastavrou emphasized once again that in Greece, from the very beginning, all companies, relevant agencies, and the Ministry came together around the same table and took all necessary steps to ensure market supply security.
Referring to his recent trip to the U.S., Mr. Papastavrou emphasized that it was confirmed there that the instrumentalization of energy—whenever, wherever, and however it occurs—is reprehensible. Meanwhile, referring to the 3+1 countries (Greece, Cyprus, Israel, and the US), he emphasized that their cooperation for the development of the energy sector in the Eastern Mediterranean was formalized through the adoption of a specific framework of principles and rules, which excludes coercive behavior and threats.
Finally, regarding urban planning, Mr. Papastavrou emphasized that no one is above the law. “There is the intention and the government policy to bring everything to light, and the Prime Minister has stated this from the very beginning,” he noted. He also noted that when urban planning responsibilities were transferred to the municipalities in 2010, it was considered a positive development in the context of decentralization because it brought decision-making closer to the citizen. However, “in practice, this created gaps and overlapping jurisdictions, which, combined with the proliferation of laws, left room for malfunctions, differing interpretations, and allowed conditions for opacity to arise.” A problem that, as he said, is corrected by the recent “Nikolaos Tagaras” Spatial Planning and Urban Development Code, which essentially codifies 180 different laws and presidential decrees into 477 articles. “Now we know what applies,” he said characteristically. At the same time, he highlighted the great importance of the reform introducing “a gov.gr for urban planning,” “so that there is a digital record of the file and the plot, thereby limiting the human factor, as was previously done with tax offices.”