The Chairman of the National Oil Corporation (NOC), Mustafa Sanallah, has confirmed that Libya has the potential to develop hydrocarbon resources and then provide Europe with safe supplies of oil and natural gas using the existing pipelines in the sea.

The NOC is currently reviewing plans to develop North Gialo 6J Area and NC-98, which is a joint oil development with Total Energy and ConocoPhillips, with an estimated budget of $3.5 billion, in addition to the presence of other projects ready to develop gas in the Ghadames basin, with a capital estimated at more than $4 billion to supply gas to the domestic and international market over the next five years, Sanallah said in a statement before the "Towards the South" forum.

He also revealed that international oil companies such as Italy's Eni, France's Total and Repsol contributed more than one billion dollars annually to exploit Libya's resources, adding that other companies, such as Algeria's Sonatrach, are resuming exploration and their activities in Libya, and other companies are showing interest in the immediate future, as he put it.

Sanallah stressed that Libya is the appropriate place to invest in natural gas because of the current crisis in Europe, pointing out that his country is characterized by its enormous wealth, considering it a major oil producer in Africa.