Libyan Oil Chief Says Country's SWF Should Buy Stake In BP

5th Jul 2010 09:16

DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--Libya should buy a strategic stake in BP PLC (BP.LN) to take advantage of its weak share price following the giant oil spill from one of its wells in the Gulf of Mexico, the country's top oil official told Zawya Dow Jones. Shokri Ghanem, Chairman of Libya's Nation Oil Co. said he will recommend buying a stake in BP to the Libyan Investment Authority, or LIA, the North African state's sovereign wealth fund. "BP is interesting now with the price lower by half and I still have trust in BP, I will recommend it to the LIA," Ghanem said in a telephone interview Monday. Ghanem's remarks follow local press speculation that oil-rich Middle East investors are considering a strategic investment in BP as it continues to battle an oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. -By Tahani Karrar-Lewsley, Dow Jones Newswires; +9714 446-1692; [email protected] Copyright (c) 2010 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 05, 2010 04:16 ET (08:16 GMT)