Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah announced Saturday that France’s TotalEnergies and U.S.-based ConocoPhillips had signed a 25-year partnership through the Waha Oil Company, marking one of the most substantial international commitments to Libya since the 2011 overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi plunged the country into prolonged turmoil.
Ambitious Production Targets
The agreement aims to boost production capacity by up to 850,000 barrels per day and is projected to generate net revenues exceeding $376 billion over the contract’s lifespan, according to Dbeibah’s announcement on X. Currently, Waha’s daily output fluctuates between 340,000 and 400,000 barrels per day under normal operations, a company source confirmed.
Waha, a subsidiary of Libya’s state-run National Oil Corporation, operates five main oil and gas fields alongside several producing subfields. These facilities connect through extensive pipeline networks that transport crude to the Sidra oil terminal and natural gas to processing facilities scattered across the country’s oil-rich eastern regions.
Expanding International Partnerships
The TotalEnergies-ConocoPhillips deal wasn’t signed in isolation. During the Libya Energy and Economy Summit held in Tripoli, the government also inked a memorandum of understanding with U.S. oil major Chevron and finalized a cooperation agreement with Egypt’s oil ministry, underscoring Libya’s push to diversify its international energy partnerships.
“The agreements reflect the strengthening of Libya’s relations with its largest and most influential international partners in the global energy sector,” Dbeibah said in his statement, framing the deals as both economic necessity and diplomatic achievement.
New Exploration Opportunities
Separately, Masoud Suleman, acting chairman of the National Oil Corporation, announced during the summit that results from Libya’s first oil exploration bidding round in more than 17 years would be revealed on February 11. The announcement has generated significant interest among international energy companies eager to tap into Libya’s substantial but underdeveloped reserves.
Persistent Challenges
Despite the optimism surrounding these agreements, Libya remains one of Africa’s most challenging investment environments. As a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and one of the continent’s biggest oil producers, the nation has struggled to capitalize on its vast petroleum wealth.
Foreign investors have remained wary of committing substantial capital to Libya, which has existed in a state of persistent instability since Gaddafi’s violent removal 15 years ago. Armed rival factions continue to clash over control of oil revenues, frequently leading to production shutdowns that have cost the nation billions in lost revenue and deterred long-term investment.
The success of this latest agreement will likely depend on Libya’s ability to maintain political stability and protect energy infrastructure from the factional violence that has repeatedly disrupted operations. For Western energy companies betting billions on Libya’s future, the stakes have never been higher.
