(Alliance News) - After engaging major oil companies in the domestic market, such as Eni Spa, Libya's national oil company Noc announced that production has risen back above 1.3 million barrels per day.

As of Oct. 17, 1.3 million barrels of crude and condensate were produced, along with 203.8 million cubic feet of gas.

Since the force majeure was lifted on Oct. 3, production has rapidly increased, with Noc drilling and restarting five wells in a few days, adding about 12,000 barrels per day. Mellitah Oil & Gas, the joint venture with Eni, reactivated a well at El Feel, contributing 1,800 barrels per day, and another 7,000 came in from new wells in the Sharara field.

Libya's plan is to increase production to 2 million barrels a day in the next three years and 3 million in the next two. Foreign companies have been urged to accelerate their plans, with groups such as Total, ConocoPhillips, Equinor and Repsol ready to respond.

Italy is the largest buyer of Libyan crude, covering about a third of exports, followed by Spain, France, the U.S. and Greece. Libya has again become Italy's top crude oil supplier since early 2024, after a decade of lesser significance.

By Giuseppe Fabio Ciccomascolo, Alliance News senior reporter

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