Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) signed on Tuesday a consultancy service contract for oil conservation and services center with the Italian company Saipem.
Saipem was awarded a Consultancy Service Contract by Libya National Oil Corporation (NOC) for the development of the Benghazi Oil Technical Center (BOTC).
According to a press release issued by Saipem, the integrated center will be established in the Mreisa Free Zone, which is located 25 kilometers from Benghazi and will be "designed with best-in class facilities and technologies to serve the Libyan oil and gas market and other critical industries."
Saipem has extensive experience in technical centers, having its own engineering centers in strategic areas worldwide. It said that its long established presence and commitment to the country, provides Saipem with a strong knowledge of Libya and its energy infrastructure. In recognition of these qualities, Saipem has been considered by Libya's NOC as the ideal partner to develop the Benghazi Oil Technical Center Project.
Saipem will initially provide the feasibility study, FEED & bid services for the duration of 15 months. In the later stages, Saipem will look after project management services and owner's engineer services over the remaining 40 months of the contract
The Chairman of the NOC Board, Mustafa Sanalla, said: "To get a significant cost savings, reduced production losses and time savings by performing maintenance work locally through the investing companies, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) is adopting the establishment of a specialized technical center in the city of Benghazi, with a high level of equipment and infrastructure; the center will be divided into suitable areas for investment by international companies or specialized manufacturers. By completing the signing of the consulting services contract with the Italian company Saipem, we will have started the implementation work of the project, through which we are looking forward to extending the cooperation bridge with Saipem to implement other projects".
During the signing ceremony Stefano Cao, the CEO of Saipem, commented: "North Africa remains a strategic area of huge potential developments in both industrial and energy sectors. This project consolidates our relationship with NOC and gives us the opportunity to support our client in creating an important center for the optimal utilization of the national resources".
