Gas supplies to Israel are set to resume this month from a field in Egypt’s northern Sinai desert after a Feb. 5 pipeline explosion that was believed to be terrorist-generated. But Israel’s national infrastructure ministry has decided to fast-track a proposed $300-million liquified-natural-gas project off the country’s central Mediterranean coast as part of an effort to diversify its sources of supply.

以色列天然气线是一家国有公用事业公司，已发布了该项目基础设施的信息。埃及供应以色列的40％的天然气供应，主要用于发电，其余的来自以色列南部地中海沿岸的天然气场。根据发布的报告，该管道还为约旦，叙利亚和黎巴嫩提供了物资。

基础设施部长乌兹·兰道（Uzi Landau）说：“我们的目标是在2012年底之前开始并运行该项目。”The government had approved a permanent offshore LNG facility, which was set to come on line in 2015. “We’re now looking at a floating terminal that can be built and operated by early 2013 at the latest,” says Shaul Zemah, the ministry’s director general.

该设施将位于距Hadera近海4.5公里的位置，该设施位于特拉维夫大都会以北45公里处。计划要求从浮动平台到海岸运行的45米深的管道，它将与以色列天然气线的国家天然气传输网络联系起来。

Israel Electric Corp. has issued its own RFI for LNG tankers with their own onboard regasification capability. Israeli and foreign exploration companies discovered huge quantities of gas in the past two years off of Israel’s northern Mediterranean coast, but those supplies are not likely to reach the local market before 2013, at the earliest. In addition, the government has decided to diversify its sources of supply.

Until the Egyptian gas supply resumes, the Israeli Ministry of Environment said it would permit use of fuel oil to run powerplants to avoid a drop in electricity production.