Libya says Shell to accelerate Libyan gas plans

By Tom Bergin

LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) plans to accelerate a major integrated natural gas exploration and liquefaction project in Libya, the country's most senior oil official told the Reuters Global Energy Summit on Tuesday.

Shell and Libya signed a deal last year that gave the Anglo-Dutch firm access to 5 exploration blocks in the prospective Sirtes basin in return for agreeing to overhaul and expand a Libyan liquefied natural gas plant to boost its capacity to 3.2 from 0.7 million tons per annum.

"They even want, from what I understand, to expedite their work on revamping this LNG plant," Shokri Ghanem, chairman of Libya's National Oil Company, said by telephone from Tripoli.

He said Shell officials had also told him they wished to move faster with the next phase of the project that would expand the plant's capacity to freeze gas for transport in tankers.

"They want to come quicker with the second phase of the LNG plant," Ghanem said.

Shell was not immediately available for comment.

Ghanem said talks with London-based BP Plc (BP.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) on a similar project were ongoing.