Partners of the Leviathan natural gas field in Israel have proposed an expansion of the site to enhance production capabilities and meet growing demand in the country and for exports.

The field is situated in the Israeli exclusive economic zone (EEZ), approximately 130km off the shores of Haifa.

The reservoir was discovered in December 2010 by NewMed Energy, Chevron (operating at the time as Noble Energy) and Ratio Energies.

NewMed Energy's plan includes drilling three additional production wells, expanding undersea systems, and upgrading platform processing facilities in the initial phase.

The $2.4bn project aims to increase the annual total gas production capacity to 21 billion cubic metres (bcm).

Since its inception at the end of 2019, Leviathan has been producing 12bcm of gas annually, supplying Israel, Egypt, and Jordan.

A subsequent phase of the project, as detailed by NewMed, could involve drilling more production wells and potentially laying a fourth pipeline to the platform, boosting the maximum daily production capacity by an additional 2bcm, bringing the total to 23bcm a year.

The partners are actively seeking to secure new supply agreements with customers in Israel and abroad for more than 100bcm.

NewMed highlighted that the partners have already committed to a budget of $505m, which includes the procurement of necessary equipment.

The Leviathan partnership includes major industry players such as Chevron, holding a 39.66% stake, and Ratio Energies with a 15% share in the project. NewMed holds the majority share, with 45.3%.

NewMed Energy CEO Yossi Abu said: "The Leviathan reservoir is the most stable and strongest energy hub in the Mediterranean.

"The expanded production capacity will meet the increasing demand in the domestic market, in addition to bolstering Israel's status as an energy provider and strengthening regional ties and collaborations."