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 LIBYA
North Africa
There are 6 sedimentary basins in Libya;
Sirte, Murzuq, Ghadames (Hamra), Pelagian (Sirte Deep), Cyrenaica and Kufra. The
Ghadames basin extends offshore into the Gulf of Gabes where it is
called the Tripoli Basin and the Pelagian basin is the offshore
extension of Sirte, mostly located in deep waters.
Although the onshore Sirte basin holds by far the largest onshore
reserves the first discovery in Libya was made in 1957 in the Ghadames
basin. The Bahi field discovered in the Sirte basin in 1958, followed by
6 major discoveries in 1959, confirmed Libya as an important oil
province.
 In 1961 BP discovered Sarir, the country’s largest field
at around 4.5 Bn Bbls and the first exports of Libyan crude began in
1961. Major oil field developments continued during the 1970s but by
1982 the US had banned the import of Libyan crude and oil products and
all US companies had left by 1986.
Since then Libyan production has not
matched prospects, but political and social changes over the last few
years have had an impact on investment and when sanctions by the UN were
suspended in 1999 many foreign companies flocked to the country.
Libya is controlled by its National Oil Corporation (NOC),
which includes the Arabian Gulf Oil Company (Agoco) and the Sirte Oil
Company (SOC). Oil output is declining from state run fields and the
country is becoming increasingly dependent on foreign capital to
explore.
Agip’s Elephant field in the Murzuq basin, with reserves
in the 500 mm Bbl range, came onstream late 2004 at an initial rate of
50,000 Bbls per day rising to 150,000 Bbls per day by 2007 and a series
of gas/condensate projects in the west and offshore are underway. Along
with some smaller additions in Ghadames and Sirte and some new
developments possible in other regions, Libyan production is expected to
rise in the near term.
Offshore: On the west of Libya, in the shallow
water Gulf of Gabes, ENI is producing Libya’s main offshore oil field in
Block NC-41. The Bouri field, holding around 670
mm Bbls and 70 Bcm of gas, is the largest oil field in the Mediterranean
Sea and was discovered by Agip in 1976, 140 km north of Tripoli in 170m
of water. Agip subsequently made a number of gas discoveries
nearby also in Block NC-41.
Bouri entered production from two platforms in August
1988 and was producing 60,000 Bbls per day by 1989. The 2nd phase of
development entailed 55 wells and 3 additional platforms, boosting
by 1992. However since then
output has declined whilst gas volumes, which are reinjected, have
increased.
In August 2003, Total started production at the Al Jurf
offshore oilfield in neighbouring Block 137, around 100 kms from the
coast in water depths of 90 metres. There is also
potential for both oil and gas discoveries in the Ghadames region from
deep waters.
Elsewhere the Pelagian basin has seen a handful of wells
although a number of companies, including BP, are about to explore the
area.
Gas: Although the NOC has concentrated on
developing oil fields it is now devoting more attention to gas. Exports,
mostly to Spain, are from a small, ageing LNG plant at Marsa el Brega, which
came onstream in 1971. Libya was the second country in the world (after
Algeria) to export LNG.
Gas is also used internally in power stations, industrial
plants and the oil and gas industry. Around 55% of Libya’s gas is
non-associated, however three quarters of production is associated. The
Sirte basin holds the largest reserves of associated gas with most
coming from 6 onshore fields.
Libya will see growth in offshore gas output over the
coming years. A joint venture between Eni and NOC called the Western
Libyan Gas Project (WLGP) is aimed at exporting large volumes of natural
gas to Italy. As part of the WLGP, Eni has developing gas reserves in
Block NC 41 discovered in the 1980s as well as in the Wafa onshore gas
field on the Algerian border in the Ghadames Basin.
Development of the C structure, 110 kms from Tripoli,
involves a central processing platform and 38 subsea wells of which 10
initially produce condensate. In 2003 a subsea production system was
installed at the C structure comprising two six-slot templates. Gas and liquids
are sent onshore
to Melitah through two pipelines where gas is piped across the
Mediterranean via the Greenstream pipeline.
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