Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) has announced the results of its first public oil and gas bid round in 17 years, awarding exploration and development contracts to five major international companies and consortia. The round offered 20 exploration blocks.
Winning entities include a consortium of Italy’s Eni and QatarEnergy; a consortium of Spain’s Repsol and Türkiye’s TPAO; US energy giant Chevron; Nigeria’s Aiteo Group; and Hungary’s MOL Group. The NOC said several blocks were not awarded due to non-compliant technical submissions, while others attracted no bids.
Chairman Masoud Suleiman stated that the corporation remains committed to implementing agreements with successful bidders and will review non-compliant offers, with the possibility of opening negotiations to improve them. He added that blocks which received no bids would be reassessed by a specialized committee to determine the reasons for limited interest and refine terms ahead of a future licensing round.
The bid process marks a significant step in Libya’s efforts to revitalize its hydrocarbons sector, attract foreign investment and expand exploration and production capacity. The NOC is seeking to boost output and strengthen the national economy following years of instability that disrupted energy operations.
