The Aphrodite field was discovered in 2011, but production has been delayed due to the fact that the shareholders, Noble Energy, Israel’s Delek Drilling and Royal Dutch Shell renegotiate a production-sharing agreement with the Cyprus government.

Mr. Lakkotrypis noted that he will meet with the aforementioned shareholders this week in order to discuss plans for revenue sharing, infrastructure plans and the price at which companies will sell the gas.

“We are now in discussions with the Aphrodite partners about what the optimal way to develop the Aphrodite field is, and it involves commercial terms as well,” Mr. Lakkotrypis mentioned in an interview in New York earlier this year.

It was mentioned that the natural gas will most likely be transported from the Aphrodite field via pipeline to Egypt, where it will be liquefied and exported.

An estimation made by Delek indicate that the Aphrodite field is estimated to produce about 800 million cubic feet per day in the first production phase.

It is worth noting that some Eastern Mediterranean countries, amongst which Cyprus, Israel, Egypt and Italy have formed a partnership to deliver more natural gas to Europe and transform the region into a major energy hub.

“Cyprus is positioning itself to become a hub … and the natural market is the European Union (EU)”, Mr. Lakkotrypis said.