Chevron enters Greece for natural gas exploration west of Crete

Chevron, the second-largest listed oil company in the world, has entered Greece to explore natural gas reserves.

According to the Ministry of Environment and Energy, Chevron aims to conduct natural gas exploration in an offshore area southwest of Peloponnese and west of Crete. The zone borders ExxonMobil and HELLENiQ Energy’s offshore concessions further south.

The Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Company (HEREMA) has already submitted the environmental study. The next steps are for the ministry to publish a decree setting the exact offshore acreage and proclaiming the tender.

Chevron’s entrance means that the two largest United States–based oil companies will bring their extensive experience and knowhow to support Greece’s effort. The consortium under ExxonMobil is expected to announce this year whether it will conduct exploratory drilling. The American group received permission from Cypriot authorities on Monday to begin drilling in block 5 of the island state’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

The developments are taking place as incoming US President Donald Trump is beginning his tenure. He has promised to lift regulatory burdens and help the oil sector increase production in public land and offshore areas.

It should be noted that it is still too early to talk about particular numbers for natural gas reserves in Greece. Only exploratory wells may reveal these volumes.

Export opportunities

In the event of discoveries, Greece is in a great geographic position to export the gas. Its network can transfer it to the northern borders to supply countries such as Bulgaria, Romania and even Ukraine through the Northern Corridor, a project for a series of pipelines that is supported by the European Union. It includes the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) as well as other links along the route. A separate pipeline to North Macedonia is also underway.

Skylakakis: Natural gas to turn Greece into an energy hub

Furthermore, the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) can theoretically move the gas to Albania and Italy after a capacity upgrade currently under consideration.

The regional dimension was highlighted by Minister Thodoros Skylakakis. Chevron’s entrance highlights Greece’s potential to become a regional energy hub and maintain its energy independence, in his view.

A race against time

One possible point of caution for Greece is how long natural gas would be the bridge fuel on the road to net zero. Offshore production is a multi-decade investment and it must be supported through long-term contracts with buyers. Both Greece and the EU have pledged to end natural gas consumption by 2050 and gradually replace it with green hydrogen and other renewable fuels.

Based on the above, the Greek hydrocarbons effort needs to move quickly to make sense from a commercial standpoint.