An EU commission for energy projects has decided to provide two million euros for a study concerning the development of the East Med natural gas pipeline, according to sources.

The East Med pipeline will be comprised of a network of submarine and overland infrastructure offering a direct link for deposits in the southeast Mediterranean area with the European gas network via Greece.

The natural gas pipeline, to measure approximately 1,700 kilometers in length, is expected to have an annual capacity of 15 billion cubic meters to supply recently discovered deposits in the Levantine Sea area, to be exploited by Cyprus and Israel, as well as existing deposits, to Greece through the country’s natural gas grid, and Italy, through a connection with the Poseidon pipeline.

The East Med project has been included in the European Union’s Projects of Common Interest (PCI), enabling EU development funding, as its construction would further diversify Europe’s natural gas sources; increase market competition; utilize the Levantine Sea deposits; bolster energy security for the EU; interconnect Cyprus with the European gas grid; support economic growth for Greece and Cyprus, as both countries stand to benefit from production revenues generated by the project; and facilitate the Greek-Italian interconnection.

Development of the East Med pipeline project will also help supply natural gas to areas in Greece that have yet to be linked to the national gas grid, such as Crete, the Peloponnese, and western Greece.