The timing of Col Muammar Gadaffi’s decision to bring Libya in from the cold has been more than fortuitous.

During years of international sanctions, Libyan oil was under-producing and its potential was under-explored. Since Col Gadaffi agreed to renounce his weapons building programme and compensate victims of the 1988 Lockerbie plane crash, foreign oil companies have leapt at the opportunity to get their feet back in the door.