Minister of Energy Yitzhak Modai has flatly rejected a $2 billion Egyptian claim for oil Israel has extracted from wells in Sinai since the 1967 Six-Day War. He said on a radio interview yesterday that the claim has no foundation in international law.
Modai expressed hope that the oil drillings in Sinai would not become an obstacle to an Israeli-Egyptian peace settlement. However, he said that Israel would continue drilling oil in Sinai “unless significant changes occur in the negotiations with Egypt.”
American experts say that the offshore wells in the Gulf of Suez operated by Israel yield about 10,000 tons every 24 hours, representing one-third of Israel’s daily consumption and an income of $900,000. The wells have an earning potential of $40 million a year for a period of 20-30 years, the experts say.
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