On Friday night, security staff of East Mediterranean Gas Company Ltd. (EMG) fought off an attack against a company-owned gas facility in El Arish in Sinai. EMG buys natural gas from the Egyptian National Gas Company (Gasco) for export to Israel via a pipeline from El Arish to Ashkelon, which EMG built at a cost of $500 million.
In a statement yesterday, EMG shareholder Ampal-American Israel Corporation (Nasdaq: AMPL; TASE:AMPL) said, "In the wake of violent incidents in El-Arish, Egypt on July 29th, in the early morning of July 30th there was an attempt to cause damage to the EMG site near El-Arish. The security forces on site returned fire, prevented any penetration of the EMG site and repelled the attack. No casualties were reported. EMG reports that the incident will not affect its operations once Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) resumes supply after it was interrupted due to an explosion at a Gasco terminal on July 12, 2011."
An Israeli source told "Globes" that Egypt's government should heed the lesson of EMG's success in defending its facility. He said, "If a private company can defend its facilities, the Egyptian government can, too."
On Saturday, terrorists blew up a gas terminal serving the gas pipeline to Israel, the fifth attack so far this year. In a statement, Ampal said that Egyptian security forces prevented an attack at a gas terminal in al-Shulaq in Sinai.
Ampal, controlled by chairman Yosef Maiman owns 12.5% of EMG.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 31, 2011
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2011