Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, fielding questions at a news conference yesterday, ruled out the possibility of any new international tender for additional licenses concerning onshore or offshore hydrocarbon exploration.

“We are not considering exploring other areas,” the Prime Minister informed, responding to a related question.

Reignited hydrocarbon exploration activity for natural gas deposits in Greece had generated rumors the government would consider staging additional tenders to grant new licenses for exploration south of Crete as well as at an offshore area between the island and the Peloponnese.

Commenting on the progress of surveys being conducted west and southwest of Crete by a consortium comprised of ExxonMobil and Helleniq Energy, formerly ELPE, the Greek Prime Minister said a clearer picture is expected towards the end of the year.

The ExxonMobil-Helleniq Energy consortium may extend the duration of its 2D seismic surveys at these blocks until the end of the first quarter to collect additional data. This could result in greater clarity and enable the consortium to skip the need for 3D surveys.

Elsewhere, Energean and Helleniq Energy are also pressing ahead with respective licenses in the Ionian Sea. Both companies have completed seismic surveys and expect to have received results towards the fourth quarter.

Energean holds a license for an offshore block northwest of Corfu and Helleniq Energy holds two licenses, Ionio and Kyparissiakos (Gulf of Kyparissia).