In an exclusive interview with Energy Capital&Power (www.EnergyCapitalPower.com), Pedro Ribeiro, Managing Director and Country Chair – Libya for TotalEnergies, shared the company’s strategic plans to enhance field performance, increase production at Waha and Sharara and advance exploration efforts in the Murzuq Basin.
With TotalEnergies participating in approximately half of Libya’s national production, how do you plan to build on this success and support Libya’s ambitious goal to further increase its oil and gas output in the coming years?
TotalEnergies has been present in Libya for over 60 years and is proud to have contributed, through its partnerships with the National Oil Corporation (NOC), to the development of Libyan oil and gas production and to the recent national production records above 1.4 mboe/d. Both Waha and Sharara, which TotalEnergies is a partner of, have recorded their highest daily productions over the decade, above 370 kbo/d for Waha and 300 kbo/d for Sharara. The plan of TotalEnergies to contribute to Libya’s further production expansion is threefold:
- By optimizing the performance of the operating fields: infills, reinstatement and maintenance of installations, wells stimulation, etc. The recent production records of Waha and Sharara have shown how significant are the outcomes of such a steady effort.
- By undertaking larger scale projects, such as Mabruk, which is set for a restart in 2025 thanks to an early production facility (EPF), which will bring production initially to 25 kb/d before a ramp-up to higher rates at later stages. Other new projects in Waha and Sharara are also being evaluated.
- By continuing our exploration effort. TotalEnergies, together with its partners, has resumed exploration activities in Libya’s Murzuq Basin, with the drilling of the Nesser well, putting an end to a long suspension of the exploration effort around Sharara. Libya holds a strategic position in TotalEnergies’ global upstream portfolio with its large, significantly untapped and low emitting resources. TotalEnergies is committed to further contribute to Libya’s production expansion.
Could you provide an update on the current status of the Waha production baseline and any upcoming developments in this area?
A consistent and ambitious production enhancement initiative has been launched in 2023 and has been steadily continued over 2024, aimed at increasing production by up to 120 kbo/d. By mobilizing drilling and work-over rigs, drilling wells, restoring the integrity and potential of the wells, renewing equipment and piping and reinstating water injection systems, significant outcomes have been targeted and achieved. Having just recorded a sequence of daily production records over 370 kbo/d, Waha testifies the relevance of the strategy putting a strong focus on the reliability and optimization of the existing fields. A number of challenges still lie ahead, and we trust the Waha partnership will deliver further.
In addition, together with the NOC, TotalEnergies has continued to progress the ambitious North Gialo project, which has the potential to increase Waha’s production by another 100 kbo/d, and plans to spud an exploration well in 2025.
Finally, safety is TotalEnergies’ first value. We are committed to constantly improve our Safety and Environment performance, which is also the best guarantee to achieve sustainable and steady production results. An integral part of the plan is to constantly promote and diffuse a strong progress in HSE culture throughout Waha’s operations.
TotalEnergies has committed to reducing gas flaring and methane emissions in the Waha fields. Can you share more details on the specific actions being taken to achieve this and the timeline for implementation? What role do you see TotalEnergies playing in Libya’s broader energy transition?
In 2023, TotalEnergies championed the Oil and Gas Decarbonization Carter (OGDC) launched at the COP28, which was signed by over 50 companies, and includes the objective of “near-zero methane emissions by 2030”. Similarly, on World Environment Day (June 5th, 2023), NOC’s statement announced “Mubadara 2030”, Arabic for “Initiative 2030”, with the ambition of “minimizing gas flaring across all fields, facilities, and oil sites” with the ultimate objective of eliminating flaring by the year 2030.
Throughout its Libyan activities, TotalEnergies sees its role as a promoter of the best environmental practices that will make Libyan oil and gas as low impact as possible. A number of actions have been undertaken, together with the NOC and the operating companies, aiming at reducing and eliminating gas flaring or venting through gas recovery for generation whether on-site or for routing to gas power plants, and through optimization of compressors. Two initiatives embody what TotalEnergies is promoting as a responsible energy producer:
- TotalEnergies’ AUSEA technology, a drone-mounted suite of sensors ensuring access to hard-to-reach emission points while delivering readings with the highest precision, has been made available to its Libyan partnering operating companies. A concrete action to encourage the move toward zero methane emissions.
- The Mabruk EPF will recover by design all the produced gas to use it for the process of heating needs. It will be the first of its kind in Libya.
TotalEnergies is moving forward with its 500 MW solar PV project, in partnership with REAOL and GECOL. How do you view the potential for solar energy in Libya, and what steps is TotalEnergies taking to ensure the success of this project as a model for future renewable energy initiatives in the country?
Libya enjoys a first-in-class solar irradiation, which makes solar a potential ideal substitute for fuel oil and gas for power or heat generation. Besides the resource, the development of solar projects requires several enablers that must be secured prior to launching construction: a suitable piece of land, a reliable grid connection to export the solar plant energy production to the end consumers and absorb the generated output, environmental and construction permits and an offtake contract securing the payment of the electricity produced. Together with REAOL and GECOL, and the support of the NOC, TotalEnergies is progressing in securing these enablers to make the Misrata 500 MW solar project a first of its kind in Libya.
The sunlight is readily available in Libya with spacious land. While respecting the environment, opportunities for solar projects should be contemplated to substitute and complement fuel gas in supplying Libya with clean power. TotalEnergies sees its Misrata utility-scale project as a reference project that will also be a test bench for the solar supply chain in Libya.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital&Power.
