Exhibition company to hold largest ever specialised fair in Libya

Libya’s first international exhibition and forum addressing the country’s infrastructure and energy needs, Project Libya, is attracting exhibition space bookings from the world’s leading export technology nations. The event, to be held from December 4 to 7 at the Tripoli International Fairground, is being held under the patronage of Dr Aisha Muammar Al-Qathafi, general secretary of the Wa’atassemo Foundation. Casapinta Design Group Ltd has been appointed contractor for the show. Project Libya (www.projectlibya.com) also has the support of the relevant People’s Committees and public and private sector organisations, including the General People’s Committee for Planning, General Planning Council, Executive Board for Housing, General People’s Committee for Industry, Electricity and Mines, National Oil Corporation (NOC) and General Electricity Company (GEC). Libya is set on a huge and challenging programme of economic development which includes the expansion, upgrading and modernisation of its vital infrastructure – a programme which will carry a projected budget of US$35 billion within the period of the upcoming National Development Plan. This will be addressed by the Infrastructure Libya element of the event. The oil and gas element of the event, Energy Libya, will serve the country’s all important energy sector, which is also seeing huge investment with $30 billion to be spent upgrading oil production from 1.6 million barrels a day (bpd) to 3.5 bpd by 2015. Power generation and distribution is also vital to Libya’s economic future and major capital expenditure will target the national shortfall in power generation with the aim of installing more than 3.5 GW of electric power production capacity by 2010. National pavilions are now being formed for Project Libya from Britain, Greece, Italy, Russia, Singapore, Spain, and the US, with other exhibitors coming from Canada, France, Germany, Malta and Turkey. They will display technology and expertise across a broad range of sectors from building and construction products and materials through to equipment for Libya’s huge oil and gas industry. A number of services will also be presented, particularly in the field of training and human resources development. Multinational names exhibiting from the oil sector include Chevron and Baker Hughes with others, including Exxon, Shell, Total and Repsol, in the pipeline. Confirmed sponsors to date include the Arab Banking Corporation, Booz Allen Hamilton, Conoco Phillips, Halliburton, Marathon and Occidental. Libyan companies will also be joining their inter-national counterparts at the show as the organisers’ national promotional campaign gains pace. Encouraged by the Libyan leader’s recent speeches urging self-reliance in supplying the country’s development needs, provision is being made to accommodate the significant number of Libyan manufacturers, service providers and agencies, which will join those companies already committed to exhibiting in Project Libya. Running alongside the exhibition will be a forum comprising parallel seminar sessions for both the infrastructure and energy sectors. Infrastructure topics will embrace urban renewal and regeneration; airport and port development; the agri-industry relative to the Great Man Made River project; power and electricity; environment; tourism; human resources development; and financial and legal frameworks. Energy topics will include issues relating to exploration; new field development; and downstream opportunities. Visitor attendance at Project Libya will be stimulated through the efforts of its supporting people’s committees and public and private sector organisations which will ensure that Libya’s planners, specifiers and procurement officials concerned with the country’s short and medium-term priorities attend the exhibition. The event audience will also comprise engineers of all disciplines, specialist contractors and general trading agencies active in sourcing the equipment and expertise essential for the development of Libya’s modernisation programme. This effort will be reinforced by the organisers’ own promotional campaign which will include press and TV advertising, poster campaigns, PR and one-to-one visits to major organisations in Libya all aimed at producing a major visitor and delegate attendance at Project Libya 2006. A spokesman from Casapinta Design Group explained that the international gathering will bring to the country the much needed technology and expertise, and play an important role in the country’s development. “We are extremely pleased that we are forming part of this world class set-up organising this unique event. Montgomery Group, the inter-national organiser, has been established since 1895 and has created exhibition initiatives and opportunities across a diverse range of industries and disciplines in Europe, the US, Africa and Asia,” he said. “They have unique experience and expertise and an innovative approach to developing exhibitions in new and challenging markets such as Libya and we are proud to form part of their organisation. Our set-up in Libya, coupled with the support and local experience we are sharing with Sahara Expo Libya, the Libyan organisers, are giving us an added edge in the market and are establishing Casapinta Design Group as a leading exhibition contracting organisation in North Africa. “We look forward to recruiting as many Maltese companies as possible to participate in the unique event.”