Full Breakdown
Cyprus Energy Projects Face Uncertainty Amid Regional Plans
9/9/2026, 9:45:14 PM
Core Developments: Gas Export Route and Power Interconnector
Leaders of Egypt, Greece and Cyprus have reaffirmed support for a plan to transport gas from Cyprus’s offshore Cronos field to Europe through Egyptian LNG facilities. Reports in Cyprus’s press indicate that the island’s participation in the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI) electricity link to Europe is being questioned, with scenarios discussed that could bypass Cyprus entirely. Both initiatives are central to the trilateral partnership’s aim to integrate the Eastern Mediterranean into Europe’s energy network, yet recent actions have raised doubts about Cyprus’s future role.
Background and Context
The gas project builds on a 2024 contract awarded by Eni’s Cyprus subsidiary to engineering firm McDermott for $500-$750 million of work on Cronos, approved on July 28 by Eni and TotalEnergies, each holding a 50 % stake. The field, slated to start production in 2028, will feed gas via an under-sea pipeline to Egypt, where it will be processed and liquefied at Damietta for export.
The electricity interconnector, originally conceived as a joint venture linking Cyprus, Greece and Israel, has progressed under the European Commission’s Projects of Common Interest framework since 2013. In summer 2024, Greece’s Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) assumed control of the project from EuroAsia Interconnector, with Cyprus playing a pivotal role at that time.
Data and Statistics
- Cronos is expected to supply the equivalent of around 2.8 million tonnes of LNG per year.
- The field contains more than 3 trillion cubic feet of gas.
- The proposed under-sea power cable, dubbed GREGY, would have a capacity of 3,000 megawatts.
- The International Energy Agency estimates total LNG supply losses of 140 billion cubic metres between 2026 and 2030.
Official Statements & Responses
In a joint declaration after a summit on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and President Nikos Christodoulides called for the connection of Cyprus’s offshore gas fields to Egyptian infrastructure to be completed “as soon as possible.” Mitsotakis outlined a possible route through Greece’s Revithoussa and Alexandroupolis terminals, noting that the gas could enter Europe via those facilities, with Greece acting as a gateway.
TotalEnergies chief executive Patrick Pouyanné said the new Mediterranean gas route would enhance Europe’s energy security by diversifying LNG supply sources. The Egyptian presidency reported that El-Sisi and Mitsotakis also discussed linking their electricity systems through the GREGY under-sea cable, which could supply Greek industry and be exported onward.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Sources differ on whether Cyprus was formally notified about the recent agreement that transferred a majority stake in GSI to France’s Meridiam. Kathimerini reports that Cyprus was absent from the signing and may have been surprised by the development, while no official response from the Cypriot government has been provided.
What’s Next
If Cyprus remains excluded, the interconnector could be re-classified from a Project of Common Interest to a Project of Mutual Interest, and the cable’s route might be altered to bypass the island—either by linking Israel directly to Crete or by connecting to the GREGY Egypt-Greece line. The European Commission’s next steps regarding the project’s status, and the timeline for Cronos’s first gas deliveries, will shape the region’s energy landscape.
