By Angelo Amante and Francesca Landini
ROME, May 7 (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Libyan counterpart Abdulhamid Dbeibah discussed on Thursday strengthening energy cooperation at a time when Italy is looking to diversify energy supplies due to the turmoil in the Gulf.
Italy, highly dependent on imported energy, is particularly exposed to the surge in global fuel prices triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
“(The leaders) discussed ways to further strengthen the already solid bilateral cooperation, with particular reference to economic relations and investment in the energy sector,” Meloni’s office said after the talks in Rome.
“The two leaders then reaffirmed their shared commitment to managing migration.”
Libya is Rome’s biggest supplier of crude oil, accounting for nearly a fifth of Rome’s total crude oil imports. However, Libya’s gas exports to Italy dropped to around 1 billion cubic metres in 2025, from 1.4 bcm in 2024.
The drop was largely the result of supply-side constraints in Libya – including rising domestic demand, repeated disruptions to infrastructure and political instability – which kept the Greenstream pipeline to Italy running well below capacity.
Members of Italy’s influential parliamentary security committee visited Libya in late April, and discussed with Dbeibah the importance of “increased investment to allow a significant rise in Libyan gas production and, consequently, exports to Italy”, according to a statement.
Italian state-controlled Eni has been present in Libya since 1959 and is the country’s leading international operator, with an equity production of approximately 162,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2025 and three development projects currently in execution, two of which will start up in 2026.
(Reporting by Angelo Amante and Francesca Landini; Editing by Alvise Armellini and Alison Williams)