The Ministry of Oil and Gas welcomed the statements rejecting and opposing the National Oil Corporation’s (NOC) intention to contract with a consortium, including Italian company “Eni”, “ADNOC” of the United Arab Emirates and French “Total”, and grant them a 40% share of the production of the Hamada oil field.
The Ministry of Oil and Gas said in a statement that, since the first hours of the news of the negotiation, it had alerted legislative body, the Government of National Unity (GNU), the Audit Bureau, the National Anti-Corruption Authority, and the Attorney General to the dangers that would result from the agreement.
The Ministry confirmed that the quota presented in the potential agreement is considered very high by all standards and unprecedented compared to the quotas currently in effect in Libya.
The Ministry considered that the share would unbalance oil contracts in Libya and is in violation of the oil contractual arrangements in force in the country, in addition to its apparent violation of not obtaining the approval of the Ministry of Oil and Gas nor the government for the unilateral negotiation.
It explained that the NOC could have obtained a higher share in production if it had offered this field in an open and transparent international bid, and that it would be the best method to assess the readiness of international companies to accept working in Libya.
The Ministry of Oil and Gas pointed out that this action would push other oil companies to demand amending their contracts and granting them larger shares equal to what is planned to be granted to this consortium, as was the case when “Total” and “ConcoPhillips” demanded amending the contracts that were signed with them.
The statement noted the need for the state to develop this discovery in partnership with Libyan financial institutions. It also added that developing this oil field was uncomplicated, as oil and gas lines and gas condensates pass next to it and can be connected quickly.
The Ministry of Oil and Gas urged decision-makers to reconsider the issue, act according to the directives of the legislative and judicial authorities, and take into account the technical opinion provided by the Ministry in this regard.
