Tripoli - (AFP) - The National Oil Corporation in Libya called on foreign companies to return and resume their work in the fields of exploration and production, justifying its request for a "gradual" improvement of the security situation in the country.

The NOC, a government body, said in a statement posted on its website that it calls on all "international companies with which oil and gas exploration and production agreements have been signed to resume their work in Libya."

The Tripoli government, headed by Abdul Hamid al-Dabaiba, had in turn invited foreign companies to return and resume their work.

It also expressed its willingness to "facilitate the return and provide a safe work environment in cooperation with the Libyan civil and military authorities."

The Foundation announced that this call came in light of its efforts to lift the "force majeure" following a realistic analysis of the security situation, which began to improve significantly.

"Force majeure" is considered a temporary suspension of work, and a protection provided by law to the corporation in facing the obligations and legal liability resulting from failure to meet oil contracts due to events beyond the control of the contracting parties.

Excavation work has begun in sites that were difficult to work in in the recent past, and a large number of international service companies are now located there, according to the statement.

The National Oil Corporation announced last month that it seeks to increase its oil production to "two million barrels per day" within "three to five years."

Since March, two governments have competed for power in Libya, one based in Tripoli (west) and recognized by the United Nations, and the other supported by Parliament and the camp of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, the strong man of the East.