Libya and Italy signed on Saturday an 25-year-long agreement worth $8 billion so that Libya would supply Italy with gas to boost energy supplies to Europe, which have declined due to the war in Ukraine.
The signing came during the visit of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to Tripoli.
The deal was signed on the Libyan side by the Chairman of the National Oil Corporation (NOC) Farhat Bengdara, and on the Italian side by the CEO of Eni, Claudio Descalzi.
The chief of the NOC said the signing ceremony of the agreement with Eni represented a clear indication that the oil sector in Libya was free of risks, and on its way to rise again to compete.
He added that Libya would return to the ranks of the most prominent oil and gas producing countries around the world.
“The signing of the agreement came after fair negotiations by the two parties, in which the interests of the Libyan state and those of the strategic partner were taken into account,” he added, reiterating that the agreement would revive the oil and gas sector in Libya.
Bengdara pointed out that the agreement included an investment of $8 billion over 3 years, especially in offshore installations “A” and “H”, adding that those were investments that the Libyan oil sector had not seen in the last 25 years.
He explained that the agreement also included the development of gas fields with reserves close to 6 trillion cubic feet of gas, and a production capacity of between 750 and 800 million cubic feet per day.
