Greece is preparing for its first offshore exploration drilling in roughly four decades, with a well in the Ionian Sea anticipated in early 2027 as Athens seeks to determine whether potentially significant natural gas resources can be commercially developed.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis referred to the planned drilling during an address to Greek-American organizations in New York on Wednesday, where he also spoke about Greece’s expanding energy ties with the United States, relations with Turkey and the country’s next national election.
The exploration well is planned for Block 2 in the northwestern Ionian Sea, where a consortium comprising Energean, ExxonMobil and HELLENiQ ENERGY has entered the second phase of exploration.
Greece’s Hellenic Hydrocarbons and Energy Resources Management Company (HEREMA) said earlier this year that the second phase includes an obligation to drill an exploration well. HEREMA has described it as the first offshore exploration drilling in Greece in about 40 years.
Exploratory drilling expected in 2027
Mitsotakis told the New York gathering that drilling is expected in spring 2027.
HEREMA had previously indicated that exploration drilling in Block 2 was anticipated by the first quarter of 2027, meaning the precise timetable could still depend on operational and regulatory considerations.
The well would be drilled in waters approximately 900 meters (2,950 feet) deep and more than 55 kilometers (34 miles) from the coast, according to HEREMA.
Energean is the operator of Block 2, alongside ExxonMobil and HELLENiQ ENERGY. ExxonMobil formally joined the concession in March 2026 after reaching an agreement to enter the project in 2025.
The move to drilling represents an important step beyond seismic surveys and geological assessment, but it does not mean that Greece has established commercially recoverable natural gas reserves in the area.
An exploration well is designed to provide information about the geology beneath the seabed and determine whether hydrocarbons are present in quantities that could justify further appraisal and, eventually, commercial development.
Greece expands offshore energy exploration
Block 2 forms part of a broader revival of hydrocarbon exploration in Greek waters.
Greece currently has offshore exploration concessions in the Ionian Sea and around Crete involving international energy companies including ExxonMobil and Chevron, as well as Greek energy groups.
ExxonMobil and HELLENiQ ENERGY are also involved in exploration southwest and west of Crete. Separately, Greece signed lease agreements in February with a Chevron-HELLENiQ ENERGY consortium covering four offshore areas, including areas south of Crete and the Peloponnese.
Athens has increasingly linked these projects to its strategy of strengthening Greece’s position in the regional energy market and diversifying European energy supplies.
Whether the exploration program ultimately produces commercially viable discoveries, however, will depend on drilling results.
Mitsotakis addresses Greek-American community
The energy announcement came as Mitsotakis addressed Greek-American organizations during his New York visit for the high-level week of the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
The prime minister also discussed Greece’s relations with Turkey, saying Athens wants peaceful relations with its neighbors while reiterating that the country would not accept threats.
“We do not threaten anyone, but we do not accept threats from anyone,” Mitsotakis said.
He also addressed Greece’s next national election, presenting his government’s pursuit of another mandate as an effort to continue its policy program rather than an attempt to establish a political record.
For the country’s offshore energy ambitions, however, the next major test will come beneath the Ionian Sea. The planned Block 2 well could provide the first direct evidence of whether geological prospects identified through earlier surveys contain natural gas resources capable of moving toward commercial development.
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