Libya to become major gas supplier to Europe

摘要

A new project will put Libya on the map as a major supplier of natural gas to Southern Europe. The Western Libyan Gas Project, an integrated development of upstream, processing and export facilities, should produce 10 billion cubic meters per year (bcmy) of natural gas from two new fields in the country, 8bcmy of which will be transported via the Green Stream pipeline to Italy. The project, with an estimated value of USD 5.6 billion, has been developed by Agip, a subsidiary of Italian energy group ENI, and Libya's National Oil Company, NOC. First flow is expected in 2005. Forty per cent of the gas will come from the Wafa field, close to the Algerian border, and the remaining sixty percent from an offshore field, NC-41, in the Gulf of Gabes, about 110km from the Libyan coast. Once onstream, die project should provide some 30 million m3 of gas and 60,000 barrels of oil/condensate daily, along with 15,000bpd of liquid propane and butane and some 500tpd of sulfur. NOC and Agip have secured long-term gas sales agreements with various customers in Europe. The client list includes Edison Gas, Energia Gas and Gaz de France.