The massive $8 billion agreement that the Italian energy giant signed this weekend with the Libyan National Oil Corporation (NOC) has been rejected by Libya’s oil ministry, which claims that it was illegal and that the ministry had not given its prior approval.

Claudio Descalzi, the CEO of Eni, and Farhat Bengdara, the CEO of Libya’s National Oil Corporation, reached an agreement on Saturday to develop “Structures A&E,” a strategic project aimed at increasing gas production to meet both domestic demands and ensure export to Europe. Giorgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister, and Abdul Hamid Al-Dbeibah, the leader of the Libyan Government of National Unity, were present when the agreement was signed.

The arrangement was, however, rejected by Libya’s Oil and Gas Minister, Mohamed Aoun, in the Tripoli-based administration of Al-Dbeibah because, in his opinion, it did not receive the permission of his oil ministry or cabinet and altered a 2008 agreement.

The pact has now been rejected by Aoun and his ally Fathi Bashagha, the rival prime minister with a stronghold in the east who was chosen by the Libyan Parliament. According to Aoun, the agreement is illegitimate and lacks equity between Libya and Italy.

The internal political strife in Libya could postpone the beginning of the project’s gas flows from Libya to Europe, which has staked its hopes, particularly through Italy, on a rise in the amount of gas coming from North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean.