The Italian Ambassador to Libya, Giuseppe Buccino expected the completion of the reconstruction work of Tripoli International Airport to be in 2024. The Ambassador praised the encouraging progress of the works that began in February.
Buccino visited the airport, whose reconstruction was entrusted to the Italian consortium Aeneas (Consorzio Aeneas). He inspected the construction, saying that the airport, once completed, will be able to serve more than 6.5 million passengers annually, and will “represent a bridge for Libya to the Mediterranean and the world.”
The project aims to build two terminals, one domestic and the other international, with all airport facilities. Both terminals cover a total of about 30,000 square meters, with the capacity to receive about six million passengers per year.
Days ago, Italy’s energy giant, Eni said that it seeks to rely on Libya and Algeria as energy suppliers, instead of Russia.
Eni’s Chief Operating Officer, Giuseppe Ricci said Monday that the firm has reduced dependence on Russian gas imports from 40% to 7-8%. “Within two years we will completely free ourselves from these imports,” he explained at a conference in Italy.
Ricci revealed that all alternative gas sources that pass through the Mediterranean will be promoted through a pipeline extending from Libya and Algeria, and the TAP line coming from Azerbaijan. This is in addition to LNG re-condensation stations. He stressed that “energy security can only be achieved through diversification.”
In April, the Italian Environment Minister, Gilberto Pichetto-Fratin said that Italy had overcome its dependence on Russian gas thanks to African gas from Libya and Algeria.
He told Corriere della Sera newspaper that “Russia used to account for 40% of our gas needs, but today Italy can import a little over 10%.” He confirmed that Italy “has actually overcome its dependence on Moscow by increasing gas imports from the east via the TAP (Trans Adriatic Pipeline) and from Africa thanks to new agreements with Libya and Algeria.”
