Page 4 - AfrOil Week 14 2022

AfrOil COMMENTARY AfrOil

Left to right: Oun, Dbeibah and Sanalla (Photo: GNU)
Turmoil in Libya continues

as Europe seeks more gas

As NOC’s chairman talks to European countries about making more gas supplies

available, Libya’s oil minister is stressing the need for caution and capacity-building

LIBYA’S political scene has, to put it mildly, petroleum product revenues.
been in turmoil since the outbreak of civil war in Sanalla has not always succeeded in achiev-
WHAT: 2011. The outlook did improve in the autumn of ing these goals, but he does appear to have been
Sanalla and Oun have 2020, with the signing of a ceasefire agreement more successful than ought to have been pos-
reacted differently to between the country’s two main factions, the sible under such conditions. Even so, he has
Europe’s show of interest formation of a Government of National Unity been facing more challenges than ever since the
in additional Libyan gas (GNU) and the scheduling of a presidential elec- formation of the GNU. The unity government
supplies. tion. However, hopes for peace have dimmed has raised new questions about the handling
since last December, when the GNU opted to of petroleum revenues, but it has also created a
WHY: postpone the vote indefinitely. rival – namely, Mohammed Oun, who became
NOC and the Oil Ministry During this long period of uncertainty, Lib- the head of the Oil Ministry in March 2021 and
have a history of conflict ya’s national oil concern, which is known as has been feuding with the NOC head ever since.
with each other.
National Oil Corp. (NOC), has done its best And now a new disagreement may be brew-
WHAT NEXT: to stay out of politics. Its chairman, Mustafa ing between Sanalla and Oun – or, at least,
The clash is likely to con- Sanalla, has tried to focus on keeping the com- between their supporters – over the prospects
tinue as long as Libya’s pany functioning to the greatest extent possi- for resuming Libyan gas exports to Italy.
warring factions lack a ble, even when clashes between armed militias
peace agreement. have impeded its ability to produce, transport, Need for new suppliers
refine and export hydrocarbons. He has worked Libya has been exporting gas to Italy (and thence
to ensure that no single political faction gains to the wider European market) via the Green-
exclusive control over crude oil, natural gas and stream subsea pipeline since 2004.

P4 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 14 06•April•2022