An Israeli company that supplies laboratory information management systems (LIMS) has been awarded a tender to help run a natural gas exploration project off Yemen's coast, the Al Quds Al Arabiya Arabic-language newspaper reports. Media leakage has created quite an embarrassment for the Yemenite regime, which does not share diplomatic relations with Israel.

According to the newspaper, Israel’s Starlims company will supply the French oil giant, Total, operating off Yemen's Balhaf coast with computer systems for analyzing data and laboratory results of samples from the natural gas drilling site. The extent of the deal is unknown. Nevertheless, Yemen Liquified Natural Gas Company (YLNG), which is partially owned by the regime, announced that its 3.7 billion dollar project is the most important in Yemen’s history.

YLNG is a joint venture owned by the state-run Yemen Gas Company, Total and the American Hunt Oil company, as well as the South Korean firms, Kogas and Hyundai. The project is expected to generate the greatest revenue in the country’s history.

News of the deal was initially reported by the Yemenite Al Wahdawi news website. Documents of the agreement, which is in its final negotiating stage, show that Starlim’s headquarters are in Hong Kong. In actuality, the company is based in Tel Aviv. The documents were presented through an Arab intermediary.

Yemeni opposition leaders called for the national gas company to back out of the intended agreement and not allow the Israeli company to operate in Yemen. In response, YLNG has denied reports that it has signed a deal with an Israeli firm. Yemen’s news agency, Saba, reports that the company is not authorized to sign contracts with Israeli companies and that it carefully examines contracts that it signs.

“Tens of companies are participating in the Yemen LNG project, but all of the participating companies are non-Israeli ones,” the company’s information official stated.

“As the government is a shareholder in the project through the YLNG and the Yemen Insurance Company, and as the chairman of the board of directors is Yemen’s minister of Oil and Minerals, Israeli companies cannot be part of the project,” the official further stated.

When asked for a response to validate details of Stalims’ operations in Yemen, the management of Stalims Israel stated that the company does not regularly respond to publicity regarding future transactions.