London: Libya is poised to open its oil sector to international investors with a landmark offering of 22 oil exploration and development areas—the country’s first licensing round in over 17 years. The move signals Tripoli’s strategic push to revive and expand crude production through more attractive production sharing contracts.
The bid round, announced on March 3, aims to boost Libya’s output as the North African nation—Africa’s second-largest oil producer and a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)—seeks to modernize its petroleum sector.
At a promotional event in London, National Oil Corporation (NOC) Chairman Massoud Suleman stated that the 22 blocks available are evenly divided between onshore and offshore acreage. He emphasized that the new contracts would be structured under a Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) framework, offering more favorable terms to investors compared to the former EPSA IV model.
According to NOC, Libya’s current oil production stands at approximately 1.4 million barrels per day (bpd), which is still about 200,000 bpd below its pre-civil war peak. The government aims to scale output up to 2 million bpd with the help of foreign partnerships and new investments.
While international interest in Libya’s oil sector has often been tempered by political volatility and factional disputes since the 2011 ouster of Muammar Gaddafi, Suleman told Reuters that the newly announced round has already attracted significant attention from major oil companies.
Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Suleman said, “The round has already generated a lot of interest from international oil companies since it was launched in early March.”
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Oil Minister Khalifa Abdulsadek confirmed that the tendered blocks are located in some of Libya’s most prolific hydrocarbon basins, including the Sirte, Murzuq, and Ghadamis regions, as well as offshore Mediterranean areas.
Abdulsadek told attendees, “The bidding will involve acreage in some of the most prolific basins in the country, including the Sirte, Murzuq and Ghadamis basins as well as offshore Mediterranean.”
Earlier this year, Abdulsadek told Reuters that Libya would need between $3 billion and $4 billion in investments to lift oil output to 1.6 million bpd.
A presentation by NOC officials revealed that the PSA model would replace the EPSA IV framework, which had previously limited investor returns. NOC expects to finalize and sign the new contracts between November 22 and November 30.
