Mellitah Oil & Gas BV—the joint venture between Eni SPA and the Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC)—has finished construction of the Bouri gas utilization project (GUP) in Libya's western offshore area, with startup procedures now underway.

The development centers on a new 5,000-tonne gas recovery module installed on Bouri field's DP4 platform in water depths of 145–183 m, Eni said in a release Oct. 19.

The infrastructure recovers and treats associated gas previously flared from Bouri field, enabling incremental production of about 700 million cu m/year, recovered volumes of which will support Libya's domestic power generation sector while providing additional gas for export through the GreenStream pipeline to Europe.

According to Eni, environmental gains form a core rationale for the project, with the gas recovery module to eliminate routine flaring, cutting greenhouse gas emissions from the Bouri field by an estimated 1.5 million tonnes/year (tpy) of carbon dioxide and positioning the development as one of Libya's major emission-reduction initiatives in the upstream sector.

Eni holds equity production in Libya of about 162,000 boe/d as of 2025, making the company the country's leading international energy operator.

The Bouri GUP also reflects a joint broader strategic alignment between Eni and NOC on balancing production growth with operational efficiency and environmental stewardship, the Italian operator said.

Beyond Bouri GUP, Mellitah Oil & Gas is advancing additional strategic developments in Libya, including the Structures A&E project that aims to bring new offshore gas resources to market for both domestic consumption and European exports, with concurrent initiatives also targeting upgrades to production and transportation infrastructure.

Startup of the Bouri GUP follows the partners’ August 2023 contract award to Saipem for the design, engineering, procurement, construction, installation, and commissioning of the Bouri recovery infrastructure, the scope of which included installation of the gas recovery module on the existing DP4 platform and laying 28 km of pipelines connecting the DP3, DP4, and Sabratha platforms.

The Bouri GUP operates within a wider production expansion strategy for Mellitah Oil & Gas in Libya, including the joint venture’s June 2026 start of production from nearby Bahr Essalam offshore gas field, which added about 800 million cu m/year of production.