Support The Moscow Times!

Gazprom Neft Counts on Eni

Gazprom Neft still hopes to return to Libya, where its deal to buy a stake in the Elephant oil project from Italian group Eni was halted by the ongoing civil war, Boris Zilbermints, deputy head of Gazprom Neft, said Wednesday.

"We still hope that when the situation in Libya stabilizes we will return to the Elephant project. … We sit and wait, we had great plans for Libya," he said.

In February, Gazprom agreed to buy half the 33.3 percent stake in the Elephant oil field held by Eni, valuing Gazprom's future stake at about $170 million. The agreement was a part of a strategic partnership signed between Eni and Gazprom in 2006. Last month, Eni said the agreement was postponed because of the conflict in Libya.

(Reuters)

Read more