On a nameless side street in Benghazi, tucked between concrete buildings, the story of a mysterious company called Arkenu began. Within months of its founding in 2023, this unknown startup transformed into a giant—securing multi-million-dollar contracts, exporting crude to global markets, and challenging Libya’s state oil monopoly.
The meteoric rise did not go unnoticed. Local and international media dug into its origins, uncovering ties to foreign players, unusual privileges granted in record time, and connections to Libya’s most powerful families. The questions grew louder after the Presidential Council announced a committee to review energy contracts—placing Arkenu back under the spotlight.
From Benghazi to London: A Sudden Giant
On its polished website, Arkenu describes itself as a “leading Libyan company developing innovative, safe energy solutions to support the local economy.” It boasts glossy photos of rigs and expansion maps.
But what raised eyebrows wasn’t the branding. It was how fast Arkenu went from obscurity in 2023 to competing with Libya’s National Oil Corporation (NOC) — the state entity that for decades monopolized oil production and exports. By 2024, Arkenu had opened a London branch. Its founders and directors span multiple nationalities — British, Dominican, and Libyan among them.
A 2024 UN experts’ report revealed how Arkenu emerged: allies of armed groups were inserted into senior NOC roles, creating a new “strategic office” outside the corporation with the power to cut deals directly with private companies, including Arkenu.
Contracts, Politics, and the Haftars
When Arkenu was born in early 2023, it was blessed by the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity (GNU). Within months, it was awarded lucrative development contracts for major fields, partnering with Libya’s National Oil Corporation and Switzerland’s Pars Holding.
According to the UN, Arkenu is under the “direct control” of Saddam Haftar, son of eastern commander Khalifa Haftar.
Libya’s Oil Minister Mohamed Aoun told Alhurra: “My ministry proposed private-sector involvement back in 2021 through service contracts. But I later discovered the government and NOC had been negotiating directly with Arkenu behind our back—something that by law falls under my ministry’s authority. I only learned about it through social media.”
Aoun was eventually dismissed by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah. A court ordered him reinstated, though the decision remains unenforced.
Critics Call It a Legal Exception
Arkenu insists its founders have long experience in oil. But political analyst Mohamed Buysir disputes that assertion:
“I’m an oil engineer, graduated in 1977. None of us know these people. What happened is simple: Arkenu was imposed as a partner. NOC told Schlumberger, which has operated in Libya since the 1950s, ‘accept Arkenu as your partner, or we’ll find another.’ So the foreign company does the work, while Arkenu appears on paper as the Libyan partner. That’s not genuine privatization—it’s a forced arrangement.”
He adds: “Under Libyan law, oil is public property. Private companies can provide services, but only NOC has the right to sell it.”
The “Triangle Deal” — UAE’s Role
In 2022, the UAE floated what insiders call the “Triangle Deal.” With oil revenues fueling rivalry between the Dbeibah clan in Tripoli and the Haftar family in Benghazi, Abu Dhabi proposed a workaround: create a new company to channel profits between both sides. That company was Arkenu.
“It was marketed as private-sector encouragement,” analyst Buysir told Alhurra. “But there was no tender, no competition. It was a political settlement disguised as business.”
Former State Council adviser Ashraf al-Shah explained the Emirati logic: “They wanted two thing: secure oil revenues for both rival camps and guarantee a direct Emirati foothold in Libya’s oil sector. The barter system was the tool: Libyan oil traded for Emirati fuel. By 2023, four UAE-based firms dominated those swaps.”
The UAE companies mentioned have not yet responded to Alhurra’s email requests for comment.
Millions of Barrels, Murky Accounts
Between May and September 2024, Arkenu exported six million barrels of crude worth $460 million, according to the UN. Reuters reported Arkenu shipments reaching ExxonMobil via intermediaries, and Unipec—China’s state oil trader—bought at least two cargoes destined for Britain and Italy.
But the money trail is opaque. Shipping documents instructed payments to accounts at Emirates NBD in Dubai and a Swiss bank in Geneva. Neither confirmed nor denied the transfers.
“Why don’t global companies contract directly with Arkenu if it’s truly licensed?” Buysir asked. “Instead, it’s spot-market deals, middlemen, and unanswered questions.”
A Public Show, No Results
In one surreal scene, Prime Minister Dbeibah convened a televised meeting, grilling oil officials about Arkenu — despite being the one who had approved its contracts.
Officials defended the company as a vetted Libyan private-sector player with a billion-dollar stake alongside Schlumberger. Dbeibah promised investigations, even suspension if wrongdoing emerged. Yet no findings have been released.
Oil Minister Aoun remains skeptical: “There is no political will. Oversight bodies have issued reports, but NOC — backed by the prime minister — ignores them. I’ve sent over 400 letters to NOC chairman Farhat Bengdara about illegal direct awards.”
A Culture of Corruption
Libya’s oil wealth has long been a prize for factions. Now, Arkenu symbolizes how murky deals replace transparency.
As Buysir concludes: “Networks of interests stretch from the government to prosecutors to companies to oversight bodies. Corruption and theft have become the norm. Breaking it will take enormous effort—maybe even force.”
For now, Arkenu remains a symbol of Libya’s fractured state: a company born of a political bargain, selling millions of barrels abroad, while Libyans at home still wait for the promise of oil to trickle down.
Hassuna Baishu
Libyan journalist based in Washington with over a decade of experience in strategic communications and media work across the United States, the Middle East, and North Africa. He has worked with international and media organizations including Voice of America, the Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), focusing on Libya and regional politics.
