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Agreement with Israel: BP wants to expand its presence in the eastern Mediterranean
BP and Adnoc, the UAE’s state energy company, have suspended a deal to buy a £1.6bn stake in an Israeli gas group amid the war in Gaza.
The companies had offered a year ago to buy a 50 percent stake in Newmed.
But negotiations were thrown into doubt in October after Hamas militants invaded Israel from Gaza.
Newmed said yesterday that the process has been put on hold due to the “uncertainty created in the external environment”, understood in the sense of war.
The BP and Adnoc bid was hailed as a historic moment because it underscored the improving relationship between Israel and the Arab world.
Israel and the United Arab Emirates were not formally recognized until 2020.
But the United Arab Emirates has repeatedly condemned Israel for what it has described as the “catastrophic and dangerous humanitarian situation” in Gaza.
Newmed said it was still interested in closing the deal. He is the largest shareholder in a gigantic gas field, Leviathan, which supplies gas to Israel, Egypt and Jordan.
BP and Adnoc said last month they would work together on natural gas projects in Egypt.