France’s TotalEnergies, Italian Eni, and QatarEnergy have signed an agreement with the Lebanese government to enter an exploration permit offshore Lebanon.

The consortium’s initial work program on Block 8 consists of the acquisition of a 1,200 km2 3D seismic survey, in order to further assess the area’s exploration potential.

TotalEnergies is the operator holding a 35% percent, while Eni also holds 35%, and QatarEnergy holds the remaining 30%.

“Although the drilling of the Qana well on Block 9 did not give positive results, we remain committed to pursue our exploration activities in Lebanon. We will now focus our efforts on Block 8, together with our partners Eni and QatarEnergy and in close cooperation with Lebanese authorities,” said Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies.