Elijah #3 Re-entry Rig

Zion Oil & Gas announced yesterday in a newsletter to shareholders and friends that results from their second re-entry into the Elijah #3 well failed to give enough evidence of hydrocarbons to continue developing the well. Company President and COO Victor Carrillo stated in the letter, “Upon analysis and interpretation of all of the data, it was decided that while there were oil shows and other indications of hydrocarbon potential observed in the shallower portion of the well, we will not pursue additional exploration activities at the Elijah #3 well.”

The letter indicates that Zion will not consider drilling their next exploratory well until late 2013 or 2014 and that the company  is re-evaluating their exploration strategy. Part of the re-evalutation includes areas in the Jezreel Valley, near the ancient site of Megiddo (Armageddon) outside of their current exploration territory. In order to explore this territory Zion would have to expand their current license area in Israel. Under Israel’s new, more complicated and more expensive permitting process, expanding exploration license territory represents more of a challenge than before. Zion Founder John Brown and Victor Carrillo will meet with Israeli Petroleum Commissioner  Alexander Varshavsky  in February to discuss the possible license expansion and their concern over Israel’s new exploration policies.

Zion Oil & Gas is dedicated to finding and producing oil and gas in Israel.

Zion CEO Richard Rinberg

Zion Oil & Gas held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Dallas on June 21. Zion CEO Richard Rinberg’s report included the year’s exploration highlights:

• In July 2010, we completed a rights offering, raising over $12 Million.
• Late in August 2010, we began drilling operations on the Ma’anit-Joseph #3 well, within the Joseph License.
• In December 2010, we completed a rights offering, raising over $18 Million.
• In April 2011, we were awarded a new petroleum exploration license on land within Zion’s previous (and now expired) Issachar-Zebulun Permit area. We named the new license the Jordan Valley License.
• The difference between a Permit and a License is that with a Permit you can investigate the hydrocarbon potential (including shooting field seismic), but you cannot drill a well; with a License you may drill one or more wells.
• Just last week, we requested the grant of a new petroleum exploration permit area, adjacent to Zion’s Joseph License area – named by us  the Asher-Joseph Permit.
• So, in addition to the exploration areas we currently hold, we have three applications for new exploration areas pending before the Israeli Petroleum Commissioner’s Office: the Asher-Joseph Permit, the Zebulun Permit and the Dead Sea License.
• Last week also saw the milestone of us reaching our target depth of approximately 19,357 feet (5,900 meters) in drilling the Ma’anit-Joseph #3 well into the Permian geologic layer in Northern Israel. After reaching the target depth, we logged the well.

Company President and COO, Bill Ottaviani shared in his Operations Report on Zion’s exploration territory: “During the past 12 months, we have increased our potential exclusive exploratory acreage position by about 60% to around 530,000 acres. This increase assumes that Zion will be granted all the permits and licenses already submitted to Israel’s Petroleum Commissioner’s Office but not yet decided upon. While there is no guarantee that we will receive any or all of the new areas requested, based on our track record of being a responsible operator, we are optimistic that the Commissioner’s Office will look favorably upon our applications.

Victor Carrillo, Zion’s Executive VP, Presented a history of Israel’s search for (and discovery of) oil and gas, and Zion’s role in the country’s exploration efforts.

All of these presentations can be viewed or downloaded from Zion’s website ‘Investor Center’.

Zion Oil Founder John Brown

Zion Oil Founder and Chairman John Brown closed the annual meeting by reading a passage from the New Testament letter to the Hebrews: “So don’t throw away your confidence, it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, You will receive what he has promised.” (Hebrews 10: 35, 36)

Zion stock settled down under $5.00 during much of March and then began to climb in April, topping at $5.40 after April 14 news of Israel awarding Zion Oil & Gas the Jordan Valley exploration license. Zion stock on the last day of trading since this report finished at $5.37.

Trading analyst, SmarTrend, announced Thursday that their  ’uptrend’ call has been “vindicated” by Zion’s recent stock performance.

So what does this mean to those of us who aren’t Wall Street day traders or stock analysts? I’m not sure – I’m not one of those guys. I own Zion Oil stock because I believe in what they’re doing and I believe in the nation of Israel. Zion’s vision is to find oil in Israel and provide for the nation’s domestic energy needs through that(those) discovery(ies).

What about the daily ups and downs of Zion’s stock? At this point, who cares? I figure that an oil company’s stock value isn’t really all that important until they’ve either discovered oil and/or gas, or they give up looking. Zion hasn’t made a discovery (yet) and they sure as heck haven’t shown any signs of giving up. Until one or the other happens, I’m all in.

*Reminder – the editor of www.OilinIsrael.net is not an investment consultant or a stockbroker (not even close). For investment advice see your financial counselor, or better yet – if you’re a believer in Israel’s G-d, seek His advice.

Earlier this month the annual National Religious Broadcasters Convention in Nashville, Tennessee was a buzz over Zion Oil’s recent exploration for oil and gas in Israel.

Christian television and radio broadcasters, including American Family Radio, Christian Television Network, the Herman and Sharon Show, Faith Radio with Bob Crittendon, and Charles Crismier’s “Viewpoint” news radio show hosted Zion Oil & Gas Founder John Brown and CEO Richard Rinberg as they had shared Zion’s vision and exploration activities in Israel with their audiences around the world.

“As believers (biblical prophecy being fulfilled in Israel) should be important to all of us as far as carrying the message that we have … other people need to know that truth, that Jesus is the Messiah. And when G-d puts something in Torah and in the Tenach, that is His Word and His Word should not be doubted.” John Brown stated as he discussed the biblical prophecy of a massive oil and gas discovery currently being fulfilled in Israel today.

Charles Crismier’s radio interview with John Brown and Richard Rinberg can be heard in its entirety at: http://archives.inforadionet.com:8080/viewpoint/vp030111.mp3

Zion's John Brown & Richard Rinberg

We (True Potential Media) traveled to Israel for a week of shooting video at Zion Oil’s office in Caesarea, their Ma’anit-Joseph #3 well site in Northern Israel, and in Jerusalem. Zion Founder John Brown, CEO Richard Rinberg, President and CEO Bill Ottaviani and Executive VP Victor Carrillo were on-site in Israel for interviews on the vision and progress of Zion Oil’s mission in Israel.

The video, photographs, and other content produced during the shoot will be compiled and presented over the next few weeks and months as Zion shares its story and its vision with the world: ” … to assist Israel in the restoration of the Land by finding and producing oil and gas – helping to make Israel politically and economically independent.”

Visit the Oil in Israel and Zion Oil Facebook pages as we add photos to the Israel albums.

Givot Olam stock shot up 69% at one point, before finally settling out at a 19.7% gain … meanwhile trading was suspended and the Israel Securities Authority demanded clarifications of the report from Givot Olam – who didn’t have anything to add.  They said a full report would be available in September.

According to Israeli newspaper Haaretz, “This is not the first time Givot has issued partial and less than definitive information.” If you visit the Givot Olam website (http://www.givot.co.il/english/index.php) today you’ll read about the 2 billion barrels they “discovered” (but never produced) in 2004.  The truth behind this week’s “discovery” is that their tests don’t show how much oil they can produce or how much the discovery may be worth financially. What they do know is that even if there is 1.5 billion barrels down there, only a small percentage of it is recoverable; estimates range from 10% to 25%.

Givot Olam has been pumping oil mixed with gas and water from the Meged 5 test well for about a week and a half, averaging about 380 barrels per day. Israel consumes 235,000 barrels of oil per day. At the rate the Meged 5 is pumping now the well would supply less than two tenths of one percent of Israel’s daily consumption. If just 10% of Givot Olam’s “discovery” was recoverable (150 million barrels), the Meged 5 would have to maintain its current pace for over a thousand years to harvest the field. Israel burns through 150 million barrels in less than two years.

Haaretz reports: A geophysicist in the field, however, called the most recent announcement “speculative” and said the 1.525 billion figure appeared “exaggerated.”

“The bottom line is that I want to see the well’s capacity of barrels per day over time,” he said. “How much the drilling site can produce – that’s what will answer questions regarding its economic viability. Regarding the reserves, I don’t think they can be assessed at the moment. It’s a very rough estimate and everything gets into the range of probabilities.”

That’s what the geophysicists in Israel (the guys who know) are saying. It’s the same thing they told me after Givot Olam announced its 2 billion barrel “discovery” in 2004.

Bottom Line: Givot Olam’s announcement of a 1.5 billion barrel discovery is highly speculative and most likely exaggerated. A “discovery” doesn’t mean how many barrels a company can actually commercially produce (2004′s 2 billion barrel “discovery” commercially produced exactly zilch). We’ll need to wait until Givot Olam submits their definitive report in September and watch production on the Meged 5. Yesterday’s announcement created a lot of hoopla, but nobody, including Givot Olam, knows the substantive reality of the “discovery” at this point.

But that didn’t stop some Israeli news agencies and  Christian websites (Joel Rosenberg’s included) from running the headline “1.5 BILLION BARRELS OF OIL DISCOVERED IN ISRAEL” with few, if any, facts to back up the headline.

So why am I raining on everyone’s parade? Here’s why: the truth. There’s nobody that believes Israel will discover oil in a big way more than I do (except maybe John Brown of Zion Oil and Tovia Luskin of Givot Olam). And I believe the Bible (Torah) points to that discovery (so do John Brown and Tovia Luskin). But sensational headlines taken from unsubstantiated announcements don’t forward the search. When sensational headlines (like the 2 billion barrel “discovery” in 2004) don’ t pass the test of reality, they only disappoint the folks who believed them in the first place and hurt the credibility of those who ran the headline. That  said, here are the facts:

• The Bible (Torah) states that Jacob (Israel) would “suck honey out of the rock, and oil out of the flinty rock.” (Deut 32:13) Of Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh) it states: “Blessed of the LORD be his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath, And for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon, And for the chief things of the ancient mountains, and for the precious things of the lasting hills, And for the precious things of the earth and fulness thereof …. (Deut. 33:13-16).  That Zebulun and Issachar “shall suck of the abundance of the seas, and of treasures hid in the sand.” (Deut 33:19) And that Asher would “dip his foot in oil.” (Duet 33:24)
• Tovia Luskin and John Brown founded their oil exploration companies based on their belief that scripture points to a major oil discovery in Israel.
• Zion Oil & Gas and Givot Olam have proven that oil exists deep below the territories the Bible (Torah) said it would be found.   Givot Olam has pumped more than 3,000 barrels of it in the last week and a half.
• Serious geological studies by the Geophysical Institute in Israel and the US Geological Survey have backed up Luskin’s and Brown’s belief by stating that they estimate a mean of 1.7 billion barrels of oil and 122 trillion cubic feet of natural gas are recoverable in the Levant Basin, which includes onshore and offshore Israel.
• Enough natural gas to supply all of Israel’s needs into the foreseeable future has already been discovered off the coast of Northern Israel.

The facts are enough. Israel has discovered huge quantities of natural gas, they’ve discovered oil right where the Bible said it would be, and I believe Israel is on the cusp of discovering major quantities of producible oil, both onshore and offshore – enough to supply them into the foreseeable future.  It’s happening now, but it hasn’t happened yet. The prophecy of Israel’s oil, I believe, is being fulfilled before our eyes, but it hasn’t been fulfilled yet. Misleading headlines aside, Givot Olam’s discovery is a part of that fulfillment. I’ll report the facts to you as we see them unfold. In the meantime here’s a more balanced article on the subject from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz: http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/business/givot-olam-meged-has-1-5b-barrels-of-oil-1.308683

Steve Spillman

The Oil of Israel: Prophecy Being Fulfilled

by: John Brown

78 pages; softcover

The Oil of Israel: Prophecy Being Fulfilled, the first book by Zion Oil & Gas Founder John Brown telling the story of Brown’s vision to discover the “Oil of Israel”. Includes Brown’s personal testimony and the scriptures that led to the search for Israel’s oil and the founding of Zion Oil & Gas. Brown shares his insights on true biblical faith and the vision and calling of Zion Oil. The book includes the full color maps of Israel’s ancient tribal boundaries and of Zion’s license area as well Zion’s progress to date in the search for Israel’s oil.

John Brown writes in the Preface: “So, why did God choose Zion to discover the oil in Israel? The answer is I don’t know why, but He did, and I believe I was told by God that it was to fulfill His promises to Israel (Isaiah 14:24) (Zechariah 1:17) and to bless the body of Christ. (Isaiah 23:18 NIV) and Zion Oil only exists because of God’s faithfulness to Israel (Psalms 36:5, 89:1-5) and not because of my faith (Isaiah 25:1).”

“Prophetically, I believe oil will be found on Zion’s leases.”
HAL LINDSEY

“John Brown, an evangelical Christian and founder and chairman of Zion Oil and Gas, believes that there is indeed oil in Israel.”
DR DAVID JEREMIAH

“This is such a vital, vital thing; we shouldn’t be surprised at all that God would save this for the end times and that God would save it for his chosen people Israel. We need to pray for John Brown, for Zion Oil and for all the people that are involved in this.”
Daystar Founder
MARCUS LAMB

“Suppose that a pool of oil, greater than anything in Arabia … were discovered by the Jews … This would change the course of history. Before long Israel would be able to independently solve its economic woes …”
DR TIM LAHAYE

“Israel? Proven reserves? Billions? When I read those words, the hair on the back of my neck stood up … By the time I sat down to write ‘Jihad’, I had decided to add a fictional oil strike – discovered by a fictional American investment
company working with a fictional Israeli company … Little did I know.”
JOEL ROSENBERG

“Dear John, I will continue to pray earnestly for the success and unlimited prosperity of Zion Oil in Israel. A major oil development in Israel would create geopolitical earthquake. I believe you have been called to the kingdom, ‘For such a time as this.’”
Most Sincerely,
Pastor John Hagee

78 pages; softcover:

The Oil of Israel: Prophecy Being Fulfilled

The Oil of Israel: Prophecy Being Fulfilled includes Brown’s personal testimony and the scriptures that led to the search for Israel’s oil and the founding of Zion Oil & Gas. Brown shares his insights on true biblical faith and the vision and calling of Zion Oil. The book includes the full color maps of Israel’s ancient tribal boundaries and of Zion’s license area as well Zion’s progress to date in the search for Israel’s oil.