Sources speaking to Nova news agency ruled out the construction of a new pipeline, parallel to the Green Stream gas pipeline, from Libya to Italy, saying it is highly unlikely because Libya would have to double its production of natural gas to build the pipeline.
The sources added that the project can happen in the event of discovering new gas fields, which is what Italy's oil giant Eni is seeking by its onshore and offshore explorations.
According to the news agency, Libya can export up to 10 billion cubic meters of gas annually to Italy via the Green Stream, a gas pipeline that connects Sicily to the gas fields in southwest Libya, but only 3.23 billion cubic meters of Libyan gas were exported in 2021, compared to 4.46 billion cubic meters in 2020.
Nova said that Libya currently has a marginal impact on Italy's gas import quotas, despite its large export capacity because 65% of the gas produced in western Libya on the border with Tunisia goes to the Libyan national grid and the rest goes to Green Stream.
The Minister of Oil and Gas Mohamed Oun told Bloomberg earlier that Libya can build a parallel pipeline within a few months, adding that the country is currently exporting to Italy about 250-300 million cubic feet of gas per day (7-8 million cubic metres).
