The discovery of the Leviathan field, the largest natural gas reservoir in the Middle East, required NewMed Energy and its partners to form a marketing strategy which would enable the development of the reservoir and the production of natural gas.
The fact that the Tamar field, which had been discovered shortly beforehand by NewMed Energy, was designated to serve as an energy source for the Israeli economy, led to an understanding that the resources in Leviathan would be mainly designated for export.