Italy’s Eni signs US$8bil Libya gas deal

Supply crunch: Motorists are seen refuelling at a petrol station in Naples, Italy. The country has increasingly sought to replace Russian gas with energy supplies from North Africa and elsewhere over the past year. — Bloomberg

ROME: Italian energy company Eni and Libya’s National Oil Corp (NOC) have signed an US$8bil (RM33.9bil) gas production deal aimed at boosting energy supplies to Europe despite the insecurity and political chaos in the North African country.

The deal, signed during a visit to Tripoli by Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, aims to increase gas output for the Libyan domestic market as well as exports, through the development of two offshore gas fields.