Farhat Bengdara Resigns: What Lies Behind the Fall of the UAE's Oil Arm in Libya?

In a notable move, Farhat Bengdara, the head of the National Oil Corporation (NOC) in Libya, submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh on January 16, 2025.

Dbeibeh accepted the resignation, which was officially attributed to urgent health issues that hindered Bengdara from effectively performing his duties and responsibilities.

The Libyan government stated in a press release that Dbeibeh appointed Masoud Sulieman Mousa, a member of the NOC’s board, to temporarily assume the role of Chairman.

Before resigning, Bengdara was facing a lawsuit over his possession of a UAE passport.

It’s worth noting that the oil sector is the mainstay of the Libyan economy, and important decisions are expected from the government in the near future to ensure the continued management of this vital sector in the country’s interest.

Legal Battles

During Bengdara’s tenure as head of the National Oil Corporation (NOC), legal challenges against him intensified. Notably, Mohamed Aoun, the former Minister of Oil and Gas in Tripoli’s government, filed a lawsuit with the Tripoli Court of First Instance, contesting the legitimacy of Bengdara’s appointment to the position.

Aoun argues that Bengdara’s appointment was unlawful due to his UAE nationality.

This legal challenge is added to another filed by Masoud Ashour Shareha, the legal advisor of the NOC’s international marketing department, who took the case to the Tripoli Court of Appeals in 2023. He contested a transfer decision to the Arabian Gulf Oil Company (AGOCO), a subsidiary of the NOC in Benghazi, which was made under Bengdara’s leadership.

In its defense, the NOC’s legal department claimed that the transfer was related to internal issues. However, in October 2024, the Tripoli Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Shareha, justifying its decision by stating that Bengdara’s actions were invalid given the illegal appointment of the NOC Chairman.

The plaintiff’s legal team presented documents showing that Bengdara had registered the INTLBA Ltd company, affiliated with the Libyan Oil Corporation, in the UK using his UAE passport.

This was argued to be a violation of the Libyan Nationality Law No. 24 of 2010, which states that anyone who acquires foreign nationality without following the required legal procedures automatically loses their Libyan citizenship.

Targeting Dbeibeh

In a bold move following the Tripoli Court of Appeal's ruling, the High Council of State sent an urgent message on December 12, 2024, to the Ministry of Interior of the Government of National Accord, intelligence agencies, the General Financial Investigation Authority, and the Audit Bureau, calling for a thorough financial and administrative investigation into Bengdara. Meanwhile, Bengdara stands firm, claiming the allegations against him are baseless and that he has the unwavering backing of the Prime Minister.

Since the Court's decision, no political figure has dared to challenge Bengdara's legitimacy as the head of the National Oil Corporation.

While Aoun aimed to diminish the influence of Prime Minister Dbeibeh, who was also entangled in the case, by going after Bengdara, he inadvertently struck a blow to Farhat Bengdara, one of the key Emirati figures in Libya, during that “conflict.”

Role of the UAE

Libyan Oil Corporation hasn't gone unnoticed by the eyes of the UAE, which has backed Haftar, and its interventions have been one of the main reasons for the ignition of Libya so far.

On May 22, 2020, the Oil Corporation accused the Emirati government of giving instructions to Haftar's militias to halt production.

This left the corporation feeling let down by Abu Dhabi, especially after its leaders publicly backed international efforts to get Libya’s oil production back on track.

Back then, Mustafa Sanalla, the then-head of the National Oil Corporation, slammed the UAE's destructive actions, warning that there must be consequences for its blatant disregard of international law and its devastation of Libya. He emphasized that the UAE posed a serious threat to both Libyan and global security.

These sentiments were echoed by Fathi Bashagha, the then-Interior Minister of the Government of National Accord, who condemned the UAE's “political blackmail” by blocking oil supplies, calling it a “heinous crime” perpetrated by a “corrupt regime that only knows oppression and dictatorship, and has no faith in democracy, civility, or peace.”

“You have used your deceptive media, corrupt money, and continuously violated UN resolutions that ban arms exports to Libya in quest of establishing another dictatorship in the region,” he said.

Despite these strong objections, the UAE continued its meddling, pulling out all the stops to overthrow its arch-nemesis, Mustafa Sanalla, who had consistently rejected its interference and dominance.

On June 27, 2022, its pressures succeeded in changing Sanalla and appointing Farhat Bengdara instead, as per AFP.

Bloomberg revealed part of the behind-the-scenes regarding the appointment of Bengdara, stating that the opportunity to dismiss Sanalla came after tribes loyal to Haftar closed oil fields and ports in eastern Libya in April 2022, and the official corporation declared a state of force majeure.

At that time, the tribes demanded Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh to resign, after Libya's oil production during the closure fell to less than 600,000 barrels per day.

Haftar realizes he cannot close oil for long periods, as this would unleash public anger and international pressure against him, as per the American agency.

He swiftly reached an agreement with Dbeibeh's government to reopen the oil facilities in exchange for appointing one of his loyalists to lead the operation. This led to Farhat Bengdara's appointment.

Oil War

Analysts of Libya’s entrenched conflict, which has split the nation into rival eastern and western factions, identify oil as the central force fueling the crisis.

In a research paper published on May 11, 2022, the Turkish ORSAM Center for Studies underscored the pivotal role of oil in Libya’s turmoil. The paper described the “oil conflict” as a core factor exacerbating the country’s political and social crises, persisting from the fall of Muammar Gaddafi's regime to the present day.

Nearly 80 percent of Libya's oil reserves are located in the eastern region.

ORSAM highlighted a critical decision by Muammar Gaddafi that continues to shape Libya’s oil politics. During his rule, Gaddafi relocated the National Oil Corporation from Benghazi in the east to the capital, Tripoli. This move diminished the strategic leverage of Libya’s eastern regions while simultaneously creating a “chronic problem” rooted in the nation’s oil resources.

Nevertheless, Benghazi played a leading role in the revolution against Gaddafi in 2011 amid the winds of the Arab Spring, and it was the main headquarters for many oil companies, thus demanding its revenues.

Recognizing this critical leverage, Khalifa Haftar wasted no time in using the situation as a political advantage, securing the backing of local tribes.

The Turkish center added that Libya has the largest oil reserves in Africa and is the largest oil supplier to Europe.

The current reserves and the volume of unexplored deposits pique the interest of foreign countries as well as local actors in establishing a strong presence in Libya through the oil institution.

The National Oil Corporation (NOC) was established in 1970 under Law No. 24, succeeding the Libyan General Petroleum Corporation, which had been created in 1968 under Law No. 13. Its primary mandate was to oversee and manage the country’s burgeoning oil sector.

In 1979, the General Secretariat of the General People's Congress restructured the corporation through Decision No. 10, aligning its operations with the goals of the transformation plan for Libya's oil industry. This included bolstering the national economy by developing and expanding oil reserves, optimizing their use, and maximizing returns.

The law also empowered the NOC to collaborate with other organizations and entities engaged in similar activities, fostering partnerships to advance the nation’s oil and gas ambitions.

Following Libya’s 2011 revolution, the NOC underwent significant changes. In May 2013, the Libyan government formally affiliated the corporation with the Ministry of Oil and Gas, establishing its headquarters in Tripoli to reflect its pivotal role in the post-revolutionary era.