Republic of Lebanon
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When the Council of Ministers approved the launch of Lebanon’s Second Offshore Licensing Round in April 2019, the initial deadline to submit applications was set to 31 January 2020. However, at the request of International Oil and Gas Companies, and later on due to the implications of the global Covid-19 pandemic this deadline was postponed to 30 April 2020 and then to 1 June 2020 respectively based on the Minister of Energy and Water’s decisions.
The Minister of Energy and Water has signed the decision relating to the completion of Lebanon's Second Offshore Licensing Round (click here to download the Minister's Decision - Click here to download the published version in the Official Gazette on December 2, 2021, issue 48). The launching of this round has already been approved by the Council of Ministers and the deadline for submission of Licensing Round Applications has been momentarily postponed due to the COVID 19 pandemic impacts on the oil and gas industry. The Minister's decision based on the recommendation of the Lebanese Petroleum Administration defined 30 June 2023 as the Closing Date for submission of Licensing Round Applications. The Minister’s decision opened for bidding all 8 non-awarded blocks for interested companies knowing that two blocks (4 & 9) were awarded in the first licensing round.
Click here to download the Minister's Decision regarding the initial deadline.
Click here to download the Minister's Decision regarding the first postponement (Cancelled by Decision No. 3 dated 3 April 2020)
Click here to download the Minister's Decision regarding the second postponement (Decision No. 3 dated 3 April 2020)
Click here to download the Minister's Decision regarding the second postponement as published in the Official Gazette issue no. 15 dated 9 April 2020.
Click here to download the Minister's Decision regarding the third postponement (Decision no. 7 dated 29 May 2020)
Click here to download the Minister's Decision regarding the completion of Lebanon's Second Offshore Licensing Round and determination of some related procedures (Decision no. 3 dated 23 November 2021)
The indicative detailed timetable of the required submissions as described in the updated TP is as follows:
| event | duration from closing date |
|---|---|
| Tentative deadline for requesting the Minister's approval of the jurisdiction of residence of an Authorized Representative outside of Lebanon | One (1) month before |
| Deadline for submission to the Petroleum Administration of proposed alternative forms of Bid Bonds (as defined below) for approval by the Minister | Three (3) weeks before |
| Deadline for submission of questions and requests for clarification on the Licensing Round, including any preliminary evaluation requests concerning pre-qualification | Two (2) weeks before |
| Final disclosure of clarifications and supplementary information by the Petroleum Administration | Ten (10) days before |
| Deadline for payment of the Retrieval Fee | Seven (7) days before |
| Deadline for submission of licensing Round Applications
Deadline for payment of the 3D seismic data license purchase price |
On the Closing Date |
As stipulated in the updated Tender Protocol (TP), once the Applications are received, the LPA will evaluate the Prequalification Applications within three weeks following the deadline for submission of Licensing Round Applications. The results of this evaluation will then be declared by the Minister of Energy and Water before proceeding with the evaluation of EPA Applications as follows:
For prequalified Applicants, the LPA will evaluate their EPA Applications and prepare evaluation reports to the Minister of Energy and Water.
The Minister of Energy and Water, assisted by the LPA, will conduct negotiations as stipulated in the updated TP and submit the results of the negotiations to the Council of Ministers.
The Council of Ministers will take the appropriate decision regarding the awards of Exploration and Production Agreements.
Licensing Round Applications remain valid for a period of 180 days as of the closing date deadline of submitting Licensing Round Applications.
