Libyan energy sector seeks normalization
ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
A view of Zawiya oil refinery is pictured in Zawiya, 57 kilometers west of Tripoli in this April 11 photo. REUTERS photo
An international exhibition for the regeneration of Libya’s oil, gas and petrochemicals sector, Oil & Gas Libya 2012, was launched yesterday at Tripoli’s International Fairground.A number of energy companies hailing from several countries across the world attended the four day event, which aimed to mark the normalization process in Libya.
“The Organizers are in consultation with the Libya National Transitional Council, now internationally recognized as the legitimate conduit to the country’s future governance. The Council has established immediate priorities which include rebuilding the country’s oil, gas and petrochemicals sector, which has suffered a lack of investment in recent years and considerable damage during the conflict,” the fair’s executives said on the official web site of the event.
Libya’s oil production has risen to 1.5 million barrels per day, said Oil Minister Abdulrahman Ben Yezza at the exhibition’s opening ceremony yesterday.
Before the popular unrest last year, Libya’s production stood at 1.6 million barrels per day, Anatolia news agency quoted him as saying.
Libya is calling on the international export community to bring much needed expertise and technology to revitalize its energy sector in exploration, production, pipelines, refining and petrochemicals, the website said.
Oil & Gas Libya 2012 follows a previous exhibition organized by Dar Alarab in association with Montgomery Libya, including Project Libya and Infrastructure Libya.
A total of 14 Turkish companies, including the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO), were present at the event. TPAO, which attended the event with a large mission, has been searching for oil in the country since 2000.
After making its first oil discovery in 2009, the company postponed its oil search till former leader Moammar Gadhafi’s fall in August of last year.
