Libya, Tunisia sign oil and gas supply agreement

Libya has signed an agreement with Tunisia to supply about 450,000 barrels of oil a month until the end of 2013 and 650,000 barrels a month during 2014, at special rates.

The deal was signed between Libya Oil and Gas Minister Abdulbari Al-Arusi and Tunisia Industry Minister Mahdi Jumaa in Tripoli, reported the Libya Herald.

As part of the deal, Libya will also take a stake in the proposed oil refinery worth about $2bn located at Skhira in the Gulf of Gabes, Tunisia.

In addition, both the countries have agreed to set up a joint working group to conduct a feasibility study into supplying Libyan oil as feedstock to the refinery.

The countries are considering building a link from Libyan oilfields to the Trapsa oil pipeline, which currently leads to the Skhira oil terminal.

The working group will also perform a feasibility study on a 260km gas pipeline, which runs from Libya’s Mellitah gas complex west of Zawia to Gabes.

In 2010, Libya’s earlier government had planned to invest in the 120,000-barrel-a-day Skhira refinery.

The government at the time planned to use Libyan oil as the feedstock to increase refinery capacity to about 250,000 barrels per day.

Libya Oil and Gas Minister, Abdulbari Al-Arusi, was quoted by the publication as saying that agreement has been signed between the transitional government and the Tunisian authorities to supply oil to Tunisia.

"Tunisia wants to renew this agreement," Arusi added. "Libya has no objection because Tunisia is a friend and supported the Libyan people during the revolution."

Both countries have also urged National Oil Corporation and Tunisian companies, which are involved in marketing and distribution of oil products, to meet before the end of September to evaluate the market for petroleum products.

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Image: Libya will also take a stake in the proposed oil refinery at Skhira in Tunisia, which is worth about $2bn. Photo: Courtesy of Walter Siegmund.