RoydadNaft –  No hydrocarbon finds were made after exploratory drilling operations at Lebanon’s offshore Block 9, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Friday.

Lebanon’s energy minister and officials from the Lebanese Petroleum Administration declined to comment.

The consortium drilling in Block 9 is led by France’s TotalEnergies and includes Italian oil giant ENI and state-owned QatarEnergy. TotalEnergies declined to comment, while QatarEnergy and Eni did not immediately reply to a request for comment by Reuters.

One of the sources told Reuters that they had “hit water” while drilling, meaning no oil or gas had been found.

Block 9 is one of the blocks falling alongside the newly delineated maritime border between Lebanon and Israel.

The boundary was drawn last year following U.S.-mediated talks.

Lebanon hopes gas and oil discoveries will help it to reverse a crippling economic crisis that has cost the local currency more than 98% of its value, eroded the country’s foreign reserves and caused rolling blackouts across towns and cities.