4th Offshore Bid Round (OBR4)

Quick Links: Bid Round Documents Model Licence Data Package Virtual Data Room

Bid Round Highlights

On December 13, 2022, the Ministry of Energy launched the 4th Offshore Bid Round (OBR4) for hydrocarbon exploration offshore Israel. OBR4 is launched in the context of the global energy crisis and many countries' strategy of diversification of natural gas supply, the increasing recognition of the East Mediterranean as an exploration hotspot, and in anticipation of related technological developments in fields such as Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) and hydrogen production. The Ministry foresees greater interest in OBR4 compared to previous Offshore Bid Rounds, and invites all relevant stakeholders to engage with us in the process of considering their participation.

Bid Zones

The area offered for bidding in OBR4 includes 20 exploration blocks (up to 400 km2 each), totaling 5,888 km2 in area, and comprising 4 Zones within the Israeli EEZ (see right):

Zone E - 3 blocks, 1,127 km2
Zone G* - 6 blocks, 1,732 km2
Zone H - 5 blocks, 1,527 km2
Zone I - 6 blocks, 1,677 km2

While bidding and work programs will be accepted for entire Zones, licences within the zones will be granted for specific blocks, in compliance with the Israeli Petroleum Law.

Most of the areas offered for bidding include 2D and 3D seismic data acquired by previous operators, and some include exploration prospects which have not been drilled. The working period for the blocks offered includes two Drill-or-Drop decision points after 3 and 5 years and it may be extended up to 7 years from the date of award. Additional information regarding the areas under offer is included within the Data Package of OBR4.

* Companies intending to bid for Zone G are invited to approach the Ministry for additional information regarding this Zone.

Bid Timeframe

The following is the planned timetable for the Bid Round process:

Event	Date
Publication of Initial Call For Bids & Availability of Data Package	December 13, 2022
Deadline for submission of Letters of Interest (LOI) - optional	February 1, 2023
End of Q&A period	March 31, 2023
Publication of Updated Call For Bids & Opening of Submissions	April 30, 2023
Closing Date for Submission of Bids	June 29, 2023 14:00 Israel Time
Estimated Date for Announcement of Successful Bids	July 31, 2023

Key Documents

Bid Round Documents

Model Licence (English - an unofficial, nonbinding translation) - also included as Schedule 6 in the Bid Round Documents.

Confidentiality Undertaking - to be sent along with proof of payment of the Participation Fee (see below)

Letter of Interest - optional, to be sent by February 1

Information for Bidders

The procedure for submitting a bid for OBR4 is as follows:

Payment of a Participation Fee of USD 50,000, to be transferred to the Ministry of Energy through its correspondent bank, according to the following details:

Correspondent bank:
Federal Reserve Bank of New York, New York
Swift code: FRNYUS33
ABA/FW: 0210-0120-8
Acc: 021084393 ISRAEA

Final Beneficiary Bank:
Bank of Israel, Jerusalem
Swift code: ISRAILIJ
Beneficiary Name: MINISTRY OF ENERGY.
Beneficiary IBAN: IL700990011317120084582
Held in Bank of Israel's books

The Fee deposited in the Ministry's bank account should be equal to USD 50,000, with all other taxes and handling expenses payed by the bidder (Details of charges on the transfer order should be: OUR).

2. Submission of a receipt showing the payment of the Participating Fee, and a signed copy of the Confidentiality Undertaking (Schedule 1.5 of the Bid Round Documents), to sagig@energy.gov.il. The bidder will then be contacted in order to confirm that the Participating Fee has been received, and to coordinate details for the delivery by courier of the external hard drive containing the Data Package.

3. Physical submission of the final bid documents according to the Ministry's offices in Jerusalem, according to the address provided in the Bid Round Documents, by June 29, 2023, at 14:00 Israel Time.

Full details regarding the process may be found in the Bid Round Documents.

Following payment of the Participation Fee, bidders for OBR4 are entitled to receive a Data Package, including seismic and well data and other documentation. For more information about the data package, please click here.

Some of the data contained in the Data Package may be viewed (but not downloaded) prior to payment of the Participation Fee via the dedicated Virtual Data Room. Additional data regarding 3D coverage will be updated soon.

Questions should be submitted by March 31, 2023, by using the designated format at the end of the bid documents in MS Word format. See the Q&A page for answers to questions that have been submitted so far.

We wish to update prospective bidders that a petition has been filed with the Israeli High Court (3143/23, Society for the Protection of Nature vs. Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, Petroleum Commissioner et al.), requesting, inter alia, that the Bid Round be cancelled or suspended. The petitioner also requested an interim order preventing the defendants from acting in a manner that will lead prospective bidders to create a reliance, or alternatively, to order the Ministry to publish an announcement regarding the petition. The Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure intends to respond to this petition and oppose both the petition and the interim order.