ENERGY: Eni won’t drill off Cyprus if Turkey sends warships

Eni is not in the business of escalating tensions between Cyprus and Turkey over offshore drilling and would stay out of any conflict, the Italian oil and gas group’s Chief Executive said on Thursday.

“I’m not worried,” Claudio Descalzi said at a conference in Rome. “If someone shows up with warships, I won’t drill wells… I certainly don’t want to provoke a war over drilling wells.”

Turkey said last week sent a drilling ship to block 7 where Cyprus has awarded hydrocarbon exploration rights to Eni and French energy company Total.

Ankara has warned international oil and gas companies to stay away from exploring off Cyprus while Eni is one of the major players in the island’s energy search with several planned drills over the next 24 months. (source Reuters)