Gold boom bankrolls Sahel conflicts
Surging global gold prices are fuelling violence and instability in West Africa’s Sahel, reports the BBC. Military regimes in
Supermajors ExxonMobil, Chevron, TotalEnergies, and Eni are among 37 global firms vying for licenses in Libya’s first oil and gas exploration bid round in 18 years, Libya’s National Oil Corporation chairman Masoud Suleman told Bloomberg this week.
Libya is offering 22 production-sharing blocks — 11 onshore and 11 offshore — including areas with undeveloped discoveries. The North African country, holding an estimated 91 billion barrels of undiscovered oil and gas resources, aims to sign contracts by year-end and boost production from 1.4 million to 2 million barrels per day within three years, depending on funding.
The tender marks a major reopening of Libya’s energy sector since its civil war began in 2011. Recent returns by BP, Eni, and U.S. oilfield services giant Weatherford signal a cautious revival of foreign investor confidence. Libya’s National Oil Corporation hopes the bid round will catalyze much-needed technology and capital to modernize its battered hydrocarbon industry.
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