Towards converting the East Mediterranean region into an offshore natural gas centre, Egypt, Greece and Cyprus have decided to fast-track discussions concerning the delineation of sea boundaries in the region.

The leaders of the three countries, met in Athens on Wednesday to discuss the possibly ways they could take advantage of gas reserves, especially after Egypt’s Zohr discovery in the Mediterranean this year.

Cypriot President, Nikos Anastasiades was cited after the third summit in November 2014 saying that all the significant hydrocarbon reserves found in the East Mediterranean and the Zohr field has the potential of being a facilitator for wider regional cooperation.

According to Greek Prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras, they have created a joint committee to work on tourism, investment and energy projects. The committee is to explore the potential for new pipelines in the region contingent on the level of gas reserves discovered.

Meanwhile, independent analysts have said that most of the gas discovered off Cyprus, Israel and Egypt will be used for domestic consumption. They however, ask if there is enough to make a pipeline to Europe achievable.

"A gas pipeline (or electric cable) from the Eastern Med to Greece, via Crete, and on to the Balkans and Eastern Europe is a non-starter on the basis of the quantities so far discovered," Michael Leigh, head of the Eastern Mediterranean Energy Project at the German Marshall Fund think-tank said.

The next summit is to take place in Cairo by 2016, Reuters reports.