Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) confirms plans to launch a licensing round by late 2024 or early 2025, along with noting initial interest in the country’s marginal assets.
“We have announced seven or eight marginal fields already and have seen big interest from more than 30 companies,” said Farhat Bengdara, Chairman of the NOC, in London on Tuesday.
The Chairman outlined Libya’s efforts to increase production from 1.25 million to 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in the next two to three years. To achieve this target, the NOC has 45 greenfield and brownfield projects in the pipeline, to be developed at an estimated cost of $17–18 billion.
“We need to ensure price stability for the coming years so that there is a healthy environment for increasing production,” said Bengdara. “We also need to invest in infrastructure and asset integrity and do more work on the upstream development and production sides.”
For Libya, gas monetization remains a strategic focus. According to the chairman, the country is only utilizing 25% of its Greenstream pipeline capacity in Italy, which it aims to improve. Libya also currently flares over 400 million cubic feet of natural gas and has 12 projects underway aimed at reducing gas flaring to near zero.
Bengdara stated that they have initiated a project aimed at reducing 35% of the flared gas from the Bahr Essalam fields. He mentioned that their partners are keen on converting this flared gas into green ammonia for exports or electricity generation. Additionally, Bengdara highlighted that the EU could offer assistance by providing financial support or technical expertise.
