The Minister of Energy, Natasa Pilides, is in Milan to participate in the international energy exhibition Gastech 2022, says a statement from the Ministry of Energy.

It is pointed out that Pilides will participate on Tuesday in a ministerial discussion on "Unlocking and accelerating the natural gas potential of the Eastern Mediterranean basin", in the context of the international energy exhibition Gastech 2022 held in Milan, following an invitation from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Ecological Transition of the Republic of Italy.

The Minister of Energy, who is already in Milan, will also co-chair, together with the Egyptian Minister of Petroleum, Tarek El Molla, today's Strategic Leadership Roundtable, co-organized on the sidelines of Gastech by the international organization East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF) and the Egypt Petroleum Show (EGYPS), on the topic of the prospects created for the natural gas of the Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa ("The East Med and North African Gas Opportunity").

It is added that Pilides will highlight the role that the natural gas reserves of the Eastern Mediterranean, including the discoveries in the EEZ of the Republic of Cyprus, can play in Europe's efforts to find new sources of gas and strengthen both its energy security and energy transition. Furthermore, she will refer to the new gas discovery in the "Cronos-1" well at Block 6 of the Cyprus EEZ, and how it contributes to the revival of interest in the Eastern Mediterranean energy corridor envisioned by the countries of the region.

Pilides returns to Cyprus on Tuesday evening, the statement concludes.