• Sonatrach resumes oil, gas drilling in Libya’s Ghadames Basin

• Operations restart after 2014 halt due to security concerns

• Move aligns with Libya’s $3-4B oil sector recovery plan
  

Algerian energy giant Sonatrach has resumed oil and gas exploration in Libya’s Ghadames Basin, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) announced in a statement issued Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025.

The well is located in Block 95/96 of the Ghadames Basin, near the Algerian-Libyan border and about 100 kilometers from the Wafa field, the NOC said.

Sonatrach suspended drilling at the site in May 2014 because of security concerns at the time. The company now plans to drill to a target depth of 8,440 feet.

The resumption follows an earlier discovery. In February 2013, the Libyan Ministry of Oil and Gas announced an oil and gas discovery in a Ghadames Basin field operated by Sonatrach. Preliminary studies suggested the field could produce about 8,200 barrels of crude oil and 1,700 cubic meters of natural gas per day, according to the ministry.

Libya, which holds Africa’s largest proven oil reserves at 48 billion barrels, has seen production repeatedly disrupted by the turmoil following the 2011 fall of Muammar Gaddafi. The country remains divided between two rival authorities: the internationally recognized Government of National Unity (GNU) based in Tripoli, and a parallel administration in Benghazi allied with Khalifa Haftar, which controls large parts of the country with support from foreign backers, including Russia.

Despite the political divide, the Tripoli-based government launched an oil and gas sector recovery plan in early 2025, backed by investments estimated at $3–4 billion. As part of this initiative, Italian energy group Eni resumed offshore exploration along Libya’s northwest coast in early October. Authorities have also held talks with ExxonMobil and Chevron on developing new blocks and boosting production from existing fields.

In a key step toward reopening the sector to foreign investment, Libya launched its first oil bidding round in 17 years in April 2025.

Walid Kéfi