Karish gas field resumes production

Following the ceasefire between the US, Israel and Iran, the Karish offshore fuel rig can also be again in operation, regardless of its location near Lebanon and the absence of a truce between Israel and Hezbollah.

The Karish platform has been idle for 40 days, and is the final to renew manufacturing, after the Leviathan discipline recommenced operations a few week in the past. The Tamar discipline continued working all through the conflict.

Energean (LSE: ENOG; TASE: ENOG), which operates the Karish rig, stated, “We’re working to renew manufacturing safely and return operations to regular in accordance with procedures.” This follows a dispute between the Ministry of Vitality and Infrastructure, which wished to return the vitality sector to regular operations, and the Ministry of Protection, which wished to cut back dangers as a lot as attainable.

The Ministry of Vitality stated, “Following assessments of the state of affairs and examination of all related concerns, the ministry determined to instruct Energean to start restoring the Karish rig for exercise. The ministry continues to work to make sure the continuity of vitality provide to all customers within the Israeli financial system and is monitoring developments and is working along with all events within the vitality sector and with the safety companies to this finish.”

Use of coal reached the utmost

In the beginning of the conflict on February 28, the Leviathan and Karish offshore fuel fields have been shut down, whereas Tamar, the sector that provides many of the fuel for the home financial system, continued to function constantly all through the conflict.

In regular occasions, Israel’s electrical energy grid is predicated primarily on native fuel reserves: Leviathan, Tamar (together with Tamar Southwest) and Karish (together with Tanin, Katlan and Dragon). Past that, there’s manufacturing utilizing renewable vitality and a small quantity of coal. However from the second the newest conflict with Iran broke out, Leviathan and Karish have been shut down to guard them from an Iranian assault (and later, from Hezbollah).

As an alternative, in line with information from the earlier conflict in opposition to Iran, coal use rose to a most. Throughout peak consumption occasions, when even that was not sufficient, Israel’s grid even switched to utilizing diesel, which is the nation’s emergency gasoline. This led, for instance, to the Ministry of Finance’s resolution to dramatically cut back the excise tax on diesel gasoline to the identical stage as the extra tax on pure fuel for electrical energy manufacturing. This was finished to forestall extreme will increase in electrical energy charges.

On April 2, after 32 days of preventing, the Leviathan discipline was allowed to renew manufacturing. This was attributable to a mixture of the lowered danger it confronted, because the rig is comparatively near the coast, and stress from Egypt and Jordan by way of the US, as these international locations are notably depending on fuel from Leviathan. Egypt imposed energy outages due to the fuel shortfall from Leviathan.

In contrast to the Leviathan discipline, which is comparatively near the Israeli coast, the Karish discipline is dozens of kilometers out at sea, and within the north not removed from the Lebanese coast. Nonetheless, it was determined to open the Karish discipline, because the ceasefire with Iran, reduces dangers.

Complete harm from fuel discipline shutdown was about NIS 1.7 billion

Because of the excessive prices of coal and diesel, relative to pure fuel, which is comparatively low cost in Israel, the shutdown of the fuel fields prompted harm to Israel’s financial system: BDO chief economist Chen Herzog estimates that the shutdown of Leviathan for a month value the Israeli GDP about NIS 1 billion because of the elevated value in producing electrical energy, lack of income for the state and losses for the pure fuel corporations. The shutdown of the Karish discipline value about NIS 500 million per thirty days, which means {that a} 40-day shutdown value a further NIS 660 million. Complete harm from the shutdown of the fuel fields was NIS 1.7 billion.

Printed by Globes, Israel enterprise information – en.globes.co.il – on April 9, 2026.

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