Fresh gas discoveries in North Africa give Mediterranean energy security a leg up

March 17, 2026, by Melisa Cavcic

Italy’s energy giant Eni has struck two new gas discoveries off the coast of Libya, upping the North African country’s hydrocarbon potential.

Eni made two new gas discoveries in Libya as a result of an exploration campaign initiated in the past months, which led to two adjacent geological structures, Bahr Essalam South 2 (BESS 2) and Bahr Essalam South 3 (BESS 3), to be drilled with the B2-16/4 and C1-16/4 wells.

Located approximately 85 kilometers off the coast in about 650 feet of water and 16 kilometers south of the Bahr Essalam gas field, the wells encountered gas-bearing intervals within the Metlaoui Formation, said to be the main productive reservoir of the area.

According to the Italian giant, the acquired data indicate the presence of a high-quality reservoir, with productive capacity confirmed by the well test already carried out on the first well. The preliminary volumetric estimates indicate that the BESS 2 and BESS 3 structures jointly contain more than 1 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of gas in place.

Eni explains that the discoveries’ proximity to the Bahr Essalam field, deemed to be the largest offshore field in the country, which has been in operation since 2005, will enable rapid development through tie-back to existing offshore facilities.

The gas produced will be supplied to the Libyan domestic market and exported to Italy. The company’s equity production in Libya was approximately 162,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2025. Three development projects are currently in execution, two of which will start up in 2026.

These discoveries in Libya come a month after Eni announced a gas and condensate discovery offshore Côte d’Ivoire.