Libya will honour all current oil contracts with Western oil companies but the ongoing crisis in the country could affect future cooperation, Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim said.
He said Libyan Petroleum Minister Shukri Ghanem was constantly in touch with the chief executives of Eni and a number of US companies and that once they were convinced that security in the country was guaranteed, they would resume operations.
Foreign oil companies have stopped production in Libya and evacuated their personnel from the country.
As for new contracts, Kaim said that would depend on developments.
His comments seem to be at odds with Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s remarks who said on Tuesday he had lost trust in all Western nations except Germany and that Libya will only invest in Russia, India and China.
“We do not trust their firms – they took part in the conspiracy against us,” Gaddafi told the German TV channel RTL. “Our oil contracts will be given to Russian, Chinese and Indian companies. The West will be forgotten. ”
