Libya Working On Increasing Oil Production To 2Bln Barrels Per Day - Oil Minister

Libya is working on increasing its oil production to 2 billion barrels per day both for domestic production and exports outside the country, Mohamed Aoun, the oil minister of Libya's government of national unity, told Sputnik

TRIPOLI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 26th January, 2023) Libya is working on increasing its oil production to 2 billion barrels per day both for domestic production and exports outside the country, Mohamed Aoun, the oil minister of Libya's government of national unity, told Sputnik.

"We are increasing the production up to 2 billion barrels of crude oil (per day)," Aoun said.

The minister added that the oil refining capacity in Libya remained relatively small.

"Maybe in the future, if an (oil) refinery in the city of Az-Zawiyah is extended and new plants are built, part (of refined materials) from there can be used for consumption and another part will be exported outside Libya, whether it is gas or oil," Aoun said.

The official added that extending gas production would take from three to five years, according to the plan.

"We have vast gas deposits, they can be developed. It is possible that there will be enough surplus for domestic consumption, and the rest can be exported," Aoun told Sputnik.

In October 2022, the Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC) signed agreements with Italian oil giant Eni and the United Kingdom's BP on offshore gas exploration. According to the NOC, the country's gas deposits exceed 80 million cubic meters of gas. In December, the Libyan government also lifted restrictions on geological exploration of oil deposits in previously inaccessible regions.