Armed business in Libya

With the end of Operation "Unified Protector", and while NATO "continues to monitor the situation, ready to assist if necessary," the gold rush in Libya is going full steam even for minor Western companies. They are taking second place after the giant U.S. and European oil companies and investment banks, which have secured the key positions.

The Farnesina (Editor’s note: the Italian Foreign Ministry) is committed to "facilitating the participation of small and medium-sized Italian companies in the construction of liberated Libya." However, it was preceded by the arrival in Tripoli of a delegation of 80 French companies, while British defense minister Philip Hammond had already asked the companies in his country to "pack their bags" and head for Libya.

Juicy business deals are in the offing, now that NATO has razed Libya to the ground. And then there’s that open strong-box on to be seized: at least 170 billion dollars of "frozen" sovereign wealth funds, incremented by oil export revenues, which can reach 30 billion annually.

But there is one problem: the climate of tension that endangers the travel of entrepreneurs inside the country. Therefore, "security" tops the list of commodities which are up for sale in Libya. Several companies have already zeroed in. Featuring prominently among them is Sne Special Projects Ltd, a British military company headed by a former paratrooper who worked as a contractor (mercenary) in Israel, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sudan and Nigeria, and who is seconded by former military intelligence officers, special forces, riot police and anti-terrorism squads.

The company, which claims a presence in Benghazi, Tripoli and Misrata since May 2011, set up a VIP residence in a luxurious villa, tightly monitored by British and Libyan mercenaries armed to their teeth and located in the capital 15 minutes away from the airport. It will be coupled with a business center, also in the capital. The "taxi" fare from the airport is slightly expensive, $800 instead of the usual five. But it is a heavy armored vehicle, linked by satellite to an operations center in Tripoli and another one in Britain, both connected to boot to NATO’s monitoring system.

In partnership with Trango Limited, a company specializing in assisting companies in high-risk locations, Sne Special Projects provides, in particular to small and medium enterprises in the energy sector, a full range of services: information of any kind (together with photos and videos), free transportation under escort of persons and materials to the borders with Egypt and Tunisia, the face to face contacts with the CNT to catch advantageous deals.

Similar services are provided by U.S. companies Scn Resources Group and Security Contracting Network, as well as various other firms more recently arrived in Libya.

The beneficiaries are not only Western companies, already busy grabbing the most lucrative contracts before the new arrival of Chinese, but also the U.S. State Department and other Western ministries for their operations in Libya, both direct or through "non-profit" associations funded by them.

The vacuum left by the collapse of the Libyan State, at the hands of NATO, is thus being filled by an underground network of interests and powers. And, in the event of unwelcome popular reactions, Special Projects can always rely on its armored vehicle for a quick getaway to the airport.