The Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC) is seeking to sign an agreement with a coalition of foreign companies to develop the Hamada gas field NC7 in exchange for a 40% share for those companies, according to news circulating within the oil sector.
Rifaat Al-Abbar, former Undersecretary of the Oil Ministry and Chairman of the Technical Committee for Discovered and Undeveloped Fields, confirmed that the information and studies conducted by international expert houses known for their competence and ability (American, French, and others) proved that the amount of gas expected to be produced from the field will be very large and will have a high economic return.
Al-Abbar said: “If there is a Libyan financial capacity to invest in developing the field and benefiting from the entire production, then why would NOC partner with foreign companies? Even if this partnership was necessary, what is the logical justification for giving a large and unprecedented share, which is 40%, to the foreign partners over the life of the agreement, especially since the development of this field will be in onshore areas of a suitable nature, and there are also fields adjacent to this field with shares that do not exceed 13%.”
“By simple comparison, in the contractual area (D), which has a large part in submerged areas and a complex offshore production platform with a water depth of about 200 metres, the percentage was 40% and drops to 30% after ten years. So how can this field, which is in the onshore areas and not far away from the beach, be granted at such a high rate,” Abbar pointed out.
“Referring to the reports of the Oil Ministry, we find them confirming the possibility of developing the NC7 field with Libyan funds so that the Libyan state can benefit from the full production and income of the field without wasting any percentage that does not need to be lost and without wasting the state’s wealth, especially since this field is among the privileges of the Libyan Gulf Oil Company, which is full of technical competencies. It has qualified personnel who have the full capacity to implement such projects using the latest technologies, and all it needs is to provide the required budgets,” he added.