Lebanon: tired of waiting

The country has postponed its offshore bid round deadline amid continuing domestic and geopolitical uncertainties

When exactly Lebanon will join the Eastern Mediterranean party still isn't clear. Egypt and Israel have made huge natural gas discoveries in their waters and Cyprus is hoping soon to follow suit. Lebanon, by contrast, hasn't yet reached the starting line. Back in 2013, the signs looked so promising. No fewer than 46 IOCs were prequalified for a process that would eventually see some of them tapping the estimated 95 trillion cubic feet of gas under Lebanese waters. But then politics put a hammer in the works. For 30 months Lebanon had no president and no effective government. Early this year, with the political system back on track, the energy ministry announced that the bid round would proce