Libya launches $ 54 bn energy city master plan
Libya has launched a $ 54 bn master plan to construct two energy cities at Al Brega and Ras Lanuf, on its
Mediterranean coast.
The government of Libya, through the Economic and Social Development Fund (ESDF) commissioned US engineering firm the
Fluor Corporation to develop a master plan for the scheme in July 2007. The fund approved the final version of the
plan in July 2009, but has only now disclosed its contents.
"The $ 54 bn project will be executed in three phases and will be implemented in 15 years," Amir Nemr, director of
process technology at Fluor, said.
"The energy city of Al Brega will include the expansion of a liquefied natural gas plant, new grassroots natural gas
liquids plant. It will also include a 350,000 barrel per day refinery, olefins and aromatics complexes plus a
mixed-feed cracker complex," he added.
The Ras Lanuf energy city will include the expansion and the upgrade of the refinery, as well as the expansion of the
petrochemicals plant.
"It will also include a new grassroots ethylene cracker, a world scale polysilicon plant, an aluminium plant and new
LNG and NGL facilities," Nemr said.
Libya has mooted a redevelopment of Ras Lanuf and Marsa el-Brega since the 1980s, but US-led trade embargoes against
Libya introduced in 1986 crippled Tripoli's plans.
The US lifted the last trade embargoes in 2004.
