Chevron hires Hanwha Ocean for Mediterranean gas field expansion

March 5, 2026, by Melisa Cavcic

Chevron Mediterranean Limited (CML), a subsidiary of the U.S.-headquartered Chevron, has put South Korea’s Hanwha Ocean on module fabrication duty for its planned expansion of gas export capacity from a giant natural gas field project off the coast of Israel.

Chevron-operated Leviathan gas asset (for illustration); Source: NewMed Energy

Hanwha Ocean has been awarded the Leviathan expansion project module fabrication contract by Chevron. This project, which is located offshore Israel, entails the fabrication of additional modules to be integrated into the currently operating platform, increasing the field’s production.

The South Korean player has supported the operator’s project development, including constructability input, since the third quarter of 2024. The execution of this project is expected to play a critical role in meeting the growing energy needs of local and regional markets.

Philippe Levy, President of Energy Plant Unit, commented: “We are honored to be awarded the Leviathan expansion project module fabrication and will remain fully committed to its safe, successful execution, reinforcing our long-term partnership with Chevron.”

This assignment comes less than two months after a final investment decision (FID) was announced for the Leviathan natural gas reservoir. The expansion of the production capacity of the strategic Leviathan production platform offshore Israel is expected to come online towards the end of this decade.

This project entails drilling three additional offshore wells, adding more subsea infrastructure, and enhancing the treatment facilities on the production platform situated approximately 10 kilometers offshore Dor, Israel.

The field’s working interest owners include Chevron Mediterranean as operator (39.66%), NewMed Energy (45.34%), and Ratio Energies (15%). Currently, work is underway to increase total gas delivery to Israel and the region to approximately 21 billion cubic meters (bcm) annually from the reservoir.

The military operation against Iran, which the U.S. and Israel launched over the weekend, has already led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and shutdown of QatarEnergy’s LNG production. The Qatari giant also declared force majeure to its buyers.