China has started an ambitious mission aimed at converting the city of Tobruk, in Eastern Libya into a Central Trade and Energy hub, with Beijing investing USD 50 Billion towards the planned project.
According to reliable reports from Beijing, at the moment China is waiting for the approval from Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar in order to commence the works.
Among the planned projects, China wants to transform the Tobruk Military Airport from a restricted hub into a shared civilian and military cargo terminal, in addition to expanding the City’s harbour.
However, it is the proposed Tobruk airport development plan which has raised concerns, especially from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries.
Apparently, the NATO countries seem to be worried that the terminal could be used by China for military and intelligence purposes.
This, according to the latest reports, may create a stumbling block for the terminal project, which also happens to be the central core in the China-Libya Tobruk bid.
To address that, observers believe that China may eventually ask Russia to help to overcome any objections from the United States.
Other Beijing proposals at Tobruk include the construction of a USD10 billion oil refinery in the Eastern Libyan city, a facility capable of processing more than 500,000 barrels of oil per day, mainly for export to European countries.
The other big project that China plans for Libya is a USD20 billion high-speed railway to connect Tobruk and Benghazi Cities with the train network of Egypt
China also intends to assist in the launching of a new Libyan Bank for Energy and Mining as well as setting up a modern telecom network in eastern Libya with the help from Huawei, which is China’s tech giant.
All these planned projects happen to be part of China’s broader goal to create a trade and energy route linking Asia, Africa, and Europe, with Libya being the pivotal hub.
Even with Libya’s ongoing political divide, China sees Tobruk as a promising gateway to build long-term economic and political influence in the region, not just for oil, but for trade, transport, and strategic power.