Many journalists, politicians, and economists are under the impression that the utilisation of a hydrocarbon reserve is exclusively an outcome resulting from the price of crude oil.
Additionally they connect and confuse the exploitation with the price of crude oil. Both constitute a strategic mistake.
The price of $30 per crude oil barrel, mainly influences oil production which occurs right now from the tar sands of Canada and Venezuela and crude oil production from the shale rocks of Dakota, USA ,eg .
Secondarily they affect the utilization of small oil reserves, under 100 mil. Barrels, which are located in water depths of over 2500 meters and total exploitation depth of over 8500 meters.
Therefore we observe another two factors which are affecting the hydrocarbon utilization.
The sea depth and the size / quantity of the reserve, and that is applicable to reserves which are already at an exploitation phase and not the ones that are still at a research stage.
In Greece we have tangible examples which indicate that oil reserves of around 30 mil. Barrels, are located at sea depths of 30-40 meters and are economically exploitable.
Such a case is the exploitation of the EPSILON reserve in the Kavala bay from the Energean company.
The pumping began in December 2015, with a daily production of 1,500 barrels. The operating cost is about $12 / per barrel, and the sale price at $32 / per barrel, which leaves a profit of $20 / per barrel.
In total, the company is pumping up 3000 barrels daily on the Kavala Bay.
For this daily production 400 people are employed, and that is not a mere detail.
The question is, whether we have another such case in Greece . And the answer is of course positive.

North of Corfu, at the Diapontian islands on marine plot 1 of the Greek EEZ, the sea depth is 30 meters, ie, as much as that in the Kavala Bay, and the reserve is around 2 billion barrels, ie, one million times greater than the one obtained by the Energean in the Kavala bay.
The daily production would be approximately 200,000 barrels per day.
Within the context of the large licensing round, there’s an offer for the exploitation by the HEP co.
Again the question is simple.
Why hasn’t that file been opened as yet, since it concerns specifically a Greek company, in which case not even ideological issues could exist?
Τhe second point is concerning the inappropriate association of the operating costs of the natural gas exploitation with the price of crude oil, in a market which is referring to tar sands and shale oil.
In Canada, the oil production from tar sands decreased by 1.5. mill.barrels /per day, the same occurring in Venezuela, where we see a reduction of Petroleum production from shale oil, because their utilization presupposes prices above $ 60 / per barrel of crude oil.
If the Greek journalists, politicians, economists and many others took a good look at the offshore region of Israel, the reserves, Dalit, Tamar, Leviathan, the offshore region of Egypt, see: Zohr reserve, and another 126 reserves located in the Nile cone, but even in the offshore region of Cyprus with the Aphrodite reserve, then they would’ve seen, that these natural gas reserves,many of which are located 150 kilometers from the coast and are at sea depths exceeding the 1500 meters (Ultra Deep water), are exploitable and that with a profit, because the extraction costs are $ 4 / Gj and the selling price is, $ 8-9 / Gj, or $ 15-18 / Gj as liquefied natural gas.
This proof of what’s happening in our neighbouring countries gives the most convincing response to the question whether the reserves South of Crete are economically exploitable or not.
And South of Crete there are, as proven by the studies of foreign scientists who, for around 45 years, they’ve worked on at least five regions with Zohr type reserves, ie, hypergigantic natural gas reserve discovered in Egypt, 160 km north of Alexandria.
The gas quantity is around 30 trillion Cubic feet, which is equivalent to 5.5 Billion Barrels of oil.
And the companies ENI, BP, Delek, Avner, Noble and BG, which are proceeding with the exploitation of these reserves, are well aware of it.
Because even the Aphrodite reserve with 5 Trillion cubic feet, which is equivalent to 900 thermodynamic, 900 mill. Barrels of oil, is economically exploitable.
The utilization of the reserves of Western Greece and the Ionian Sea, namely, Ioannina, Arta, Preveza, Patras Gulf, Katakolon and the Diapontian islands, ie, where there are already offers for exploitation of the reserves, solves the issue of debt and unemployment to a large extent.
So why doesn’t the Greek government proceed with the exploitation of the Greek reserves and they opt and prefer to import natural gas from abroad?