Claudio Descalzi, chief executive of Italy’s Eni, has stated that his oil company has stepped up production and exploration in Libya rather than focusing on mergers and acquisitions, which has made it more competitive in Libya over the past eight years.

Italian media outlets quoted Descalzi on Tuesday as saying that Eni is not concerned with the activities of its French counterpart Total in Libya.

Eni is currently operating in the exploration and production and the gas and power sectors in Libya. Among the mega projects is the Greenstream pipeline, which exports around 280 billion cubic feet (7.9 billion cubic metres) per year of natural gas from Mellitah Complex on the Libyan coast to southeastern Sicily Island. From Sicily, the natural gas travels to the Italian mainland, and then onwards to the rest of Europe.

Economy