Oil and gas licensing round in Libya might soon come to fruition

Ben Guadara, head of Libya's NOC, insists that the Eni agreement is "only the first step in a long path for greater and more investment.

As per Argus, the head of Libya's state-run oil corporation stated at CERAWeek that his country will be prepared to undertake oil and gas licensing round after this year. If Libya is successful in holding a licensing round next year, it will be the country's first in almost twenty years and will aid in achieving its three-year output target of 2 million barrels per day. According to data from OPEC's most recent Monthly Oil Market Report, Libya's crude oil production decreased in January to 1.148 million bpd from an average of 1.153 million bpd in the fourth quarter of last year.

According to a research released by the African Energy Chamber last month, Libya's capacity to produce crude oil through 2024 might be as high as 1.8 million bpd. And that's even if peace and stability returns to Libya and the conflicts between the two governments end. Nonetheless, the Libyan Government of National Unity maintains that in the next two to three years, the nation may output up to 3 million bpd. By striking a $8 billion offshore oil and gas agreement with Eni and committing to BP and Eni's exploration drilling plans in the Ghadames and Sirte basins—with offshore drilling scheduled for next year—Libya has made some headway toward improving gas production. Ben Guadara, head of Libya's NOC, insists that the Eni agreement is "only the first step in a long path for greater and more investment."