Tripoli: The Libyan government announced Friday that a massive offshore industrial infrastructure for the Bouri gas project set sail from an Italian port as part of a multibillion-dollar plan aimed at recovering gas previously burned off and converting it into usable resources. The government said in a statement that the offshore platform left the Marina di Ravenna port after nearly two years of construction and preparation work. It said the platform is expected to arrive at the field site within four days.

According to Anadolu Agency, Libya's National Oil Corporation stated that the contract to build the massive offshore industrial infrastructure for the Bouri gas project was signed with Italian company Saipem in August 2023. The project was budgeted at $1.565 billion, with approximately $928 million already spent by December 2025. The next phase involves transporting project units to the Bouri field ahead of heavy-lift operations and technical linking with platforms 3 and 4.

The project aims to utilize a design capacity of up to 125 million cubic feet per day of natural gas and reduce gas flaring at the Bouri offshore field to zero, aligning with Libya's plan to eliminate gas flaring by 2030. The corporation said the project is expected to enter production in September 2026, which would help boost domestic gas supplies and allow for the export of surplus volumes.

Located around 130 kilometers (81 miles) off Libya's coast, the Bouri field is considered one of the largest offshore fields in the Mediterranean basin and is operated by Italian energy company Eni. Libya produces around 2.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas daily, with production reaching 62.69 billion cubic feet in April, according to National Oil Corporation data. The country is seeking to increase gas production and expand exports to Europe by 2030, relying on reserves estimated at around 80 trillion cubic feet, in addition to newly announced discoveries.